Naruto: Fate Breaker
by Drake Wilson
Summary: Raised not knowing the secret power in his veins, Naruto finds himself thrust into a world of magic and monsters where he must master his powers and make alliances in order to earn the right to live, but between his fallen angel 'master' and the devils of Kuoh Academy, Naruto's got his work cut out for him. Features a Fem!Issei, Rated M for Ecchi scenes and Jiraiya and Issei.
1. 1: Beginnings

Naruto: The Cursed Child

A/N: Alright so this is an idea I've had in my head for a bit now. Thanks to Roanes for Beta-ing my initial ideas and helping me iron out a few ideas.

Before you read, there will probably be characters behaving out of character in varying degrees and this story, while occasionally paying homage to the Real Canon of Highschool DxD, This story does have its own Canon so if something doesn't make sense in the original material, that's because the history and everything is different in this.

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With all that boring stuff out of the way, let us begin.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story.

* * *

 **Chapter the First: Beginnings**

 _In Which an Angel gets punched in the face and a Devil ends up naked_

* * *

It was a sight so picturesque that anyone gazing upon it could be forgiven for thinking they had died and gone to heaven: a beautiful meadow that stretched out further than the eye could see. Beautiful flowers swayed in the light breeze while petals danced through the perfume-laden air. One such group of petals tumbled around a giant oak tree before falling softly to the ground and onto the face of one Naruto Uzumaki, who suddenly stirred as he brushed the petals from his face. He awkwardly tried to look around but found he was resting his head on someone's lap. It was so comfortable that he just wanted to stay put and bask in the happiness that seemed to permeate through his body.

Eventually curiosity won out and he turned to look at the face of the person whose lap he was resting in but was blinded by an otherworldly light and all he could make out was a clearly feminine figure wearing a pale blue blouse. Her face was impossible to identify due to the bright light, but the gentle chuckle she made on seeing him move carried to his ears perfectly. Naruto wasn't the most religious person, but he was pretty sure that if angels were real, then this mysterious woman would easily be mistaken for one. Her blonde curls fluttered as another breeze passed over them.

"Who are you?" Naruto found his voice after what seemed like an age of lying there, basking in the ethereal presence of his companion.

She spoke and although Naruto couldn't decipher the words, he felt the meaning engrave itself in his soul as if she were speaking some higher language that surpassed mere things such as words. _"You should rest while you still can, cursed child."_

"What do you mean by that?" Naruto tried to get up, but the woman gently yet firmly put his head back in her lap.

" _Yours is a path of struggles and strife."_ She stroked his cheek fondly. " _But if you persevere then all your dreams shall come to fruition."_

"Who are you?" Naruto mumbled as he felt the warmth of her lap and her soothing ministrations rob him of his energy.

" _A friend who is watching over you from upon high. Now then Naruto Uzumaki… It is time for your tale to begin."_

* * *

"Wha…" Naruto blinked and looked around, struggling to gain his bearings until he realised where he was: Sat in the passenger's seat to his dad's car while said person was driving.

Minato Uzumaki (Formerly Namikaze) glanced at his son concerned. "Are you alright? You were tossing and turning quite a bit in that dream."

"Y-yeah I'm fine… Just an odd dream." There was a flicker of a smile on the youth's face before he looked at the heavily bandaged left arm, which was the whole reason he had packed all his belongings and left his family home. Even through the multitude of bandages there was a faint glow. "How much longer until we reach this friend of yours?"

"I'd hardly call him a friend," Minato sighed sadly. "It's your uncle Jiraiya, the one who checks on your periodically."

"That old pervert?" Naruto went quiet and stared out at the dark, rain covered streets. "So… He's my birth father?"

"I don't think so… but I suspect he knows who that is." Minato glanced concerned at his adopted son.

"It doesn't matter anyway. You and mom are my parents." Naruto smiled at Minato who chuckled and the two continued the drive in silence.

It had come to some surprise to Naruto when his mother and father had told him he was adopted. He was the spitting image of Minato after all.

The story he was told is that his parents, that is to say Minato and Kushina, were unable to have children of their own. His father was a priest until he left the church to marry Kushina and believed that this was some sort of divine punishment for abandoning his faith. Long had Minato devoutly prayed for forgiveness and it was in one such fit of prayer, that there was a knock at the door and what looked like a tired angel handed Naruto over, told them that 'Him above had heard their prayers' before handing them a small book and vanishing into the night.

Naruto had always assumed it was just a made-up story, especially as he could remember when Kushina was pregnant with his twin sisters, but then his left hand had suddenly started glowing with a strange energy that seemed to soothe anyone who beheld it. This had been a warning sign mentioned in the book that had been left behind by the angel, along with an address that they were to visit in the event of any of the symptoms that had been listed occurring: including but not limited to: Spontaneous ominous Latin chanting from the walls, Spontaneous combustion of items with a five meter radius of Naruto and him suddenly turning into a demon. All things considered, a glowing hand was probably the best outcome.

Still it hadn't been easy leaving his life behind. He had two little sisters who idolised him and when he imagined them waking up to find he had suddenly left, it caused his heart to ache. It was a painful thought but less painful than the very real concern he could accidentally cause one of his sisters to burst into flames. His mother had been bad enough, openly bawling as she hugged him and promised that there would always be a spot at home for him and his relocation was only temporary until they sorted out whatever the problem was.

"Here we are," Minato mumbled as they pulled up to a small house. As they got out of the car and Naruto collected his bags, Minato noticed a large collection of holy symbols in the garden, as if warding against intruders. As the former priest got closer to the house, he recognised the symbols from a variety of religions although most of them were completely foreign to him.

As the father and son approached the front door Naruto noticed several horse shoes hammered around it and hesitated, but Minato stepped forwards. If his son's life was in jeopardy, he would do whatever was required to protect him. The elder blonde knocked at the door four times, waited for a few moments before knocking twice then standing back, shivering slightly in the light drizzle.

There was the sound of various bolts opening and finally the door opened to reveal a large man. He had a wild mane of hair and grinned on seeing them.

"If it isn't the preacher Minato? So, it's finally happened huh?" The man looked at Naruto and his heavily bandaged arm. "You'd best come in then."

Sharing a concerned look, Minato and Naruto followed the giant of a man into the house, where the host bolted several locks and drew a strange magic circle using a large block of chalk that had been resting in an umbrella stand. Satisfied with his handywork, the large man guided them into what looked like a western style living room and gestured to some dog-eared recliners before plopping down in one closest to a slowly burning log fire.

"So then," Jiraiya, Naruto's self-proclaimed uncle, gestured at Naruto's arm. "What phenomenon did he experience?"

"His arm glows with a strange power." Minato helped Naruto unwrap the bandages before revealing the softly glowing limb to the man who let out a satisfied hum.

"I see you mastered the sealing scriptures I left behind," Jiraiya nodded at Minato, "I couldn't even sense the energy until you began to remove the bindings." He took a good look at the glowing arm before letting out a sigh, "Well the good news is this means he had a good upbringing. Congratulations preacher. Had one of the negative phenomena triggered it would have been due to living a rough life or some sort of tragedy unlocking his powers early."

"Powers?" Naruto asked.

"Right kid… I'm going to tell you a little story," The older man pointed to a large picture over the top of his fireplace. "This piece is known as the 'End of Judgement'. Fun fact, it is based on something that really happened. See a long time ago Angels and Devils were at war."

"Angels and Devils?" Naruto repeated incredulously.

"You don't believe?" Jiraiya glanced at Minato who smiled weakly. "Well whatever. Trust me kid, they are very real, and I should know…" A pair of grey wings spread out from the strangers back, looking like a pair of filthy dove wings. "I am a Fallen Angel." Taking the shocked expression on Naruto's face as confirmation he was convinced, the fallen angel continued with his story. "See this war got bad and as a result, some Angels started to question if this was truly His will. Some of these refused to fight but there were those who continued, and this doubt caused them to become Fallen. You see when an Angel feels they have betrayed His Will, they will become a Fallen Angel. Our wings turn dark and we are cast from heaven, forced to live on Earth or wherever we can find a place to call home. At its peak, this war had three factions." Jiraiya walked over to the picture and began to point at it.

There were what looked like three armies attacking a giant eye which had several circles and strange tomoe shapes periodically along the outer rings. "The Angels, Devils and Fallen Angels were all at war, each faction sure they were right and not willing to give up. There were so many deaths… So much pain and sorrow that mixed in with the angelic and demonic energies that remained from the battles. This somehow gave birth to… something." He gestured to the large eye, "I call this monster a Nephilim, a being purely made of the sorrows of war. To this day we don't know if it is sentient or not, but one thing is for sure, it was powerful. All three armies were forced to join forces just to hold it back. In the end a group of heroes from each faction managed to seal the creature away and a treaty was signed to ensure the three factions would never war again. That's not to say there haven't been individual battles or proxy wars but I'm getting a head of myself." Jiraiya looked at the blank faced Naruto and the concerned looking Minato.

"And this affects Naruto how?" Minato glanced at his son.

"Oh, that's just some backstory," Jiraiya waved dismissively. "It is more the details of the pact that affect him. See, to this day we don't understand how the creature was created but we knew one thing, it was made from a mixture of divine and demonic energy. Usually it is impossible for such a creature to come to be, even if an angel reincarnated as a devil, their soul would be that of a devil- even if they can use Angelic abilities. It was unanimous though that we couldn't allow another to be created. While an end to large wars seemed to be the answer, there was always the chance that a lesser Nephilim could be created that would attempt to awaken the sealed one and continue the destruction from all that time ago. To cut a long story short, your birth mother was a devil and your birth father was an angel. This is usually not a problem as any child of such a union in the past was either an angel or a devil, but in your case… there were three children. One was born an Angel, one was born a devil and then… there was you." Jiraiya paused to allow everything to settle in. "You had no wings, no tails or anything but there was one thing that you did have, well two things really. You had two souls, one angel and one devil soul that somehow acting in concert."

"Oh," Was Naruto's weak reply.

"The leaders of all three factions demanded your head," Jiraiya spoke softly, "They feared you could lead to the Nephilim re-awakening, labelling you as one of its kin. Your mother was fine with that. She got a devil child and honestly, I don't think she held any love for your father or any of her children. Your father however disagreed and got me to hide you from the world. I think I did a pretty good job," The fallen angel puffed out his chest. "Thanks to my understanding of various magics I've been able to hide from any pursuers and I made sure that you would remain undetectable from any one who could wish you harm."

"Let's get to the part where I turned into a nightlight," Naruto waved the glowing arm.

"W-well. To hide your presence, I sealed away your powers which have been steadily building and straining against my seal and well… It finally burst, and your energy rushed to the hole in the seal which happens to be on your arm. It should fade after the excess energy has finished bleeding away…" Jiraiya laughed. "I was fairly sure that a positive manifestation would show, I could tell you and your wife would be good parents." He nodded sagely.

"And the people who were hunting Naruto can find him now?" Minato scowled. "Can't you reseal him?"

"It's not very practical to keep resealing him. Imagine Naruto's a tap, sure he was easy to seal when there was only a trickle of flow coming out of him but now the tap is like half open, so any seal put on him will burst within a few weeks at best. It isn't impossible for him to live out the rest of his life like that but the older he gets, the more frequent he will need his seals replacing and eventually he is going to slip up and they will find him, and they will use any method to get a hold of him. It isn't just Naruto they would target, but you, your wife and daughters as well."

"Everyone is out to get me? Even the Angels?" Naruto blinked.

"Especially the angels. You don't know how deep-set the fear of the Nephilim is. You don't know the cost of sealing it away."

"The cost?"

"…The Creator was destroyed in the attempt." Jiraiya muttered.

"That… That's not possible," Minato clutched his crucifix in horror.

"So, I hope you can understand how desperate all three factions would be to find and destroy Naruto and that those who wouldn't destroy him, would want to control him instead. That's why I am here to offer an alternative to running away and constantly hiding."

"Fighting back?" Naruto suggested.

"Yeah, because that would definitely convince them you aren't a threat," Jiraiya rolled his eyes before striking Naruto with a rolled-up newspaper, "Use your brain Gaki!"

"Well what's your idea genius?!" Naruto scowled back at the fallen angel who looked at him sternly.

"In order to be able to live your life, there are several people who need to be convinced you aren't a threat. The Four Seraph's who guard the Throne of Heaven, The Four Great Satans of Hell and Azazel of the Fallen Angels. Basically, if all the leaders agree you aren't a threat then you are good."

"And how do I get them all to think that?" Naruto asked.

"…I'm still working on that bit," Jiraiya laughed weakly. "But never fear! The Great Jiraiya will have a plan! Honestly, I wasn't expecting to have to deal with this until you hit puberty, but you must be what… 16? I should have another 14 years to prepare!"

"Who the hell reaches puberty at 30?!" Naruto retorted.

"I may possibly be misremembering when I went through puberty," Jiraiya begrudgingly accepted. "But that was millennia ago! Plus, I was an angel. Do you know how hard puberty is for an angel who doesn't want to fall? I had to appear to so many Nuns and they were all solid 9s!"

"Getting back to the issue at hand," Minato rubbed his forehead, "What do we do now?"

"Well that depends on Naruto here," Jiraiya looked at him. "You can either live your life in fear, constantly replacing your seal and praying… actually don't do that it will get an angel's attention, hoping that you don't get discovered or you can stay with me and master your powers, earn your right to live and be happy and safe in the knowledge you and your family (probably) won't get targeted by an (official) assassination attempt."

"I don't want to endanger my family," Naruto clenched his fists.

"Good response!" Jiraiya gave him a cheesy grin and two thumbs up.

"Naruto," Minato hugged his son. "I am proud of you but don't feel like you have to do this. If you want to stay with us, you can."

"I know," Naruto returned the hug, "But what kind of a big brother would I be if I put Tsunade and Mito in trouble? Besides it's not as if we can't see each other, right?"

"Well I'd keep contact to a minimum just in case you get discovered before we are prepared but otherwise yeah." Jiraiya nodded. "I'll figure something out."

"I'd best head back home then," Minato released his son. "If anything should happen to Naruto…"

"Don't worry," Jiraiya put a hand over his heart, "I give you my word that I will do everything I can to protect Naruto."

"And his education?" Minato asked.

"…Seriously?" Jiraiya deadpanned, before withering in the ex-priest's cold gaze. "S-sure! In fact, I had a plan that involves him joining one of the most prestigious schools in the country! Trust me, I have everything under control."

"Naruto," Minato's face softened, "Remember we are just a phone call away."

"I know, tell Tsunade and Mito I'm sorry I couldn't say goodbye to them and tell mom not to worry. I'll be back before she knows it."

"I'll pass the message on," with a final nod to Naruto and warning look at Jiraiya, Minato left the house and Jiraiya followed him, making sure to redraw the magical circle and close al the bolts again before returning to Naruto.

"Right then! Are you ready to learn some awesome powers?" Jiraiya walked over to large bookcase that seemed to form out of the shadows before picking a large tome made of leather and tossing it at Naruto, who was knocked over by the sheer weight.

"The complete guide to channelling magic," Naruto looked at Jiraiya curiously.

"Don't worry there is a translation spell on it so even though it is an 'Olde' English book you should have no problems. I'm sure you'll master the first few exercises pretty quickly." Jiraiya waved dismissively. "Oh, before I forget your room is in the attic so make yourself comfortable and find me when you have completed the first two exercises."

"R-right…" Naruto lifted the book with a grunt of exertion before climbing up the stairs and finally a step ladder to get into the dusty, window-less attic. There was a futon in one corner and a small lamp, but the room was otherwise empty of furniture. There were various magic circles and horseshoes decorating the wall and offering some sort of mystical protection (Naruto assumed). Tossing his backpack full of clothes to one side, he opened the book and read the name of the first exercise he came to. "Advanced Manipulation of Magical Energies to create physical replicas capable of independent thought. [Grand Magus Rank Recommended]"

"Are you sure this is the right book?" Naruto yelled down the stairs.

"What? Too hard for you?"

"Like hell it is! I'll kick this books ass!" Naruto shot back as he stared intently at words that made no sense to him, but he'd be damned before he admitted defeat.

After a few hours Jiraiya went up to check on him and found him snoring noisily.

"Didn't think he'd have this much difficulty with the starter exercises," He frowned before looking at the open book and snorting loudly. "Oh right, that's a western book so he's reading from the back. A Grand Magus skill… Huh. I'll give him a few days before pointing out he is trying to learn a high-level skill without any of the foundations. Maybe it will teach him humility or something." The old pervert chuckled before moving a blanket to cover the sleeping Naruto and heading back downstairs.

* * *

"Good morning Naruto!" Jiraiya beamed as he helped himself to some of the toast that Naruto had made, "Are you ready for the first part of Operation: Jiraiya's Awesome Scheme!"

"I vote we change the name," Naruto deadpanned.

"Denied," Jiraiya smirked as he sat down in the worn-out recliner near the fire. "See I happen to have it on good authority that there is a school quite nearby that is a known hangout of Devils that are linked to at least two of the Four Satans. Quite a prestigious school as well. If you can win over these devils, then they could put in a good word with the Satans and (hopefully) they'll see you as more useful alive than dead. But first thing first… You'll be needing this uniform!"

"Kuoh academy?" Naruto frowned as he looked at the logo on the uniform he had been given. It was a large overcoat and waistcoat that looked more like a butler's outfit than a student's.

"Yup," Jiraiya nodded. "Trust me, with this uniform you'll have access to one of the best schools in Japan (at least when it comes to the quality of girls there) which should keep your dad happy. Also, I'll need you to bind your left arm with these bandages. They have various sigils to protect you from detection."

"I'm not a fan of lessons but I guess I can understand why my dad wants me to learn stuff," Naruto sighed heavily as he let Jiraiya bandage up the still glowing limb.

"I wouldn't worry about the lessons," Jiraiya smiled.

Several hours later, a severely irritated Naruto glared at his reflection in a puddle.

"I wouldn't worry about the lessons," Naruto grumbled before throwing his mop at the puddle he was failing to clear up. "What the hell Jiraiya?! Why am I a janitor at an all girl's school?!"

He froze as he noticed some of the female students mutter to each other and look at him darkly, causing him to flinch before picking up the mop and getting back to work. Jiraiya had simply dropped him off and left him in the 'helpful' hands of his fellow staff. Apparently, the All Girl's school was starting preparations to become a Co-Ed school and it was decided Naruto would be a test case, but not as a student because Jiraiya had no faith in him passing the entrance exams. No, he was enrolled as a janitor. It wasn't what he had been expecting but he could understand the logic, after all he wanted to appear as a helpful person and he could do that easier as a janitor than as a student but being the only male in an all girl's school made him feel like he was an intruder.

He looked around for the member of staff who was supposed to be showing him around, only to find himself alone in the corridor. While his outfit marked him out as one of the support staff at the academy, he was very aware that anyone who was unaware of his employment would assume he was a boy who had snuck in for some perverted scheme, given his youth and the fact that he was literarily the only male member of staff he had seen so far.

"Uzumaki-san," A curt clipped voice snapped him out of his thoughts and he span around to see a girl staring at him sternly. She was an attractive woman and the Kuoh student uniform only served to amplify that fact (in Naruto's opinion anyway). She had a focused look on her face with her violet eyes peering at him from behind her glasses. She was followed by a muscular looking girl with short blonde hair and grey eyes as well as a wide grin but when Naruto tried to look at her there was a strange sensation that forced him to look away, much to the girl's amusement.

"Y-yeah," Naruto shrugged off the strange nausea that accompanied looking at the other girl for too long. "Sorry should I know you?"

"I am the student president, Shitori Souna," The glasses wearing woman looked at him critically before indicating the girl to her side. "This is another member of the council, Saji-san."

"Sup," The girl's voice sounded wrong to Naruto but thinking about it made him feel dizzy, so he just nodded in response.

"I hope you understand that you are a pilot scheme. Your behaviour could very well shape the future of this school." Souna glanced at the puddle he was cleaning up. "The Standards here are very high. Should you be found lacking, I will not hesitate to have you removed from the school. Are we clear?"

"C-crystal!" Naruto saluted sloppily, dropping the mop he was carrying which tipped over the bucket he had been using and spreading dirty water across the hallway.

"Good," There was a ghost of a smile and Souna walked away, her friend shaking with barely concealed amusement.

As he watched the two students walk away, he let out a sigh he didn't realise he was holding. "Man, that girl scares me. It's like talking to an actual demon or something."

"What the hell Uzumaki-san," An angry voice yelled, and Naruto turned to see an irate maid advancing on him. "I leave you alone to have a small cigarette break and return to this mess? Are you completely incompetent? You need to get your act together!"

While Naruto was getting lectured, Souna, or Sona as she was known to those who knew her true nature, paused and turned to her companion. "So, the sensors at the gate were correct. It appears our Janitor has an impressive amount of magical energy hidden behind a complex seal array on his left arm."

"Yeah…" There was a flickering and suddenly Saji was a young male wearing a female school uniform. "He almost saw through my disguise. I could see his mind and eyes struggling to agree with what was there. Do you think he has a sacred gear or something?"

"I don't think so." Sona paused as she looked at her newest pawn before sighing and looking away. "Keep maintaining that illusion. Should all go to plan you will be able to attend as a male student shortly but for now I need you to stay disguised."

"Are you planning to recruit that janitor?" Genshirou Saji cracked his knuckles, "With the latent magical energy he had, he could make a good rival for me with some training."

"…We shall see. The manner of his recruitment was somewhat suspicious, so I suspect he is not here just to clean hallways. The sealing implies he knows magic and either underestimated us or had no idea that devils of our level were here. We will keep an eye on him." Sona Sitri, heiress of the Sitri clan and one of the rare noble devils, stared into the distance thoughtfully. "Besides Rias may take a liking to him. She was looking for powerful people to add to her peerage for her upcoming Rating Game."

"If he genuinely is as powerful as he seems, wouldn't it be a waste to let the House of Gremory get him?" There was a hint of disappointment in Genshirou's' voice. "In order for you to achieve your dream, you'll need some powerful people who have sworn absolute loyalty to you."

"We'll see what the future holds." Sona frowned softly. "In the meantime, I want to know where this Uzumaki Naruto came from and why he suddenly turned up here. If he can be used, then brilliant. If he is a threat, then…"

"He'll be dealt with," Genshirou cracked his knuckles and looked as menacing as he could considering he was wearing an ill-fitting girl's uniform.

* * *

"Thank you!" The student had a bright smile on her face as she took the tray offered by Naruto. It seemed that along with Janitor responsibilities, Naruto was supposed to help-out with the catering staff. Fortunately, an elite academy such as this one had no shortage of professional chefs and waiters, so Naruto only had to work in the store. Apparently, the school figured this was a good way to introduce the students to him. He wondered how bored these girls must have been seeing as he had generated quite the crowd.

There was a sudden hush and the crowd parted as if on some unspoken command and two girls walked towards the store. For a second Naruto forgot to breathe as he was overawed by the beauty of them. Souna had been a beautiful woman but even she (narrowly) lost to these two girls. Judging by the way the other students were acting, these two had to be school idols.

The first girl had long red hair with brilliant blue eyes and an impressive figure that made Naruto wonder if she was even Japanese. When she smiled at him, he forgot how to speak briefly before a light chuckle from the other girl snapped him from his stupor. This second girl looked more Japanese with her long black hair although her soft violet eyes were different enough that they caught Naruto's attention. As with the other girl, her figure was one that models would kill for. Remembering his job, he cleared he throat.

"Ah hello and welcome to Kuoh's Cafeteria store. How can I help you?"

"So, you are the new member of staff." The red-haired beauty smiled, "My name is Gremory Rias, pleased to meet you." She smiled widely. "Sorry for disturbing you, I was just curious what was causing such a fuss."

"Oh, it's nothing," Naruto rubbed the back of his head, "The name is Uzumaki Naruto and the pleasure is all mine. Can I help you?" He looked at the other girl who tilted her head thoughtfully.

"Himejima Akeno," The black-haired girl smiled but unlike Rias', this one sent shivers down Naruto's spine as his instincts warned that this girl could possibly be a bigger threat to his wellbeing that even Souna. "Keep up the good work okay~"

With that the two girls turned and the rest of the crowd reformed, gossiping about the beauty of the two girls before finally remembering why they were there in the first place and watching the new member of staff at work until Souna appeared to chastise the girls for their behaviour, pointing out they were blocking the people who genuinely wanted to use the store.

From a distance, Rias and Akeno looked at the clearly out of his depth Naruto.

"That is a lot of magical power…" Akeno mumbled.

"It didn't seem that much to me," Rias glanced at her friend.

"Didn't you notice the bandages on his left arm? There were powerful seals in that. I could feel them." Akeno tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Why did such a powerful potential piece appear right now? It feels a bit like a trap."

"Hm… I didn't get any bad vibes from him though." Rias was deep in thought. "And if he genuinely is here by chance then it would be bad if someone else snagged him first. Still the fact he has those seals implies he knows about magic. I think we should focus on Issei-chan."

"Have you made any attempts to make contact with her?" Akeno watched Naruto like a cat watching a mouse and deciding whether it wanted to kill it or not.

"No… I would prefer for her to have a normal life just a little longer." There was a clear look of distress on Rias' face. "But I will make sure she gets one of my summon cards soon."

"If that's your plan," Akeno finally looked away from Naruto, who felt as if a large weight had been lifted from his shoulders, much to his confusion.

"It is," Rias nodded. "Let's head back to the club room and let Koneko and Kiba know about this."

The two left the cafeteria, having gained more questions than answers from their impromptu investigation.

* * *

"My everything aches…" Naruto groaned as he walked out of the school gates. Besides the brief fifteen-minute lunch break he had been allowed, the other members of staff had run him ragged today and he got the feeling he wasn't meeting the high standards that were expected of him. He found himself almost looking forwards to trying to decipher the complicated text that Jiraiya had left him as it would give his body a chance to recover, even if it pushed his mind to its limit.

Deciding there was no real rush to get back home, Naruto decided to take a short detour, walking through a park on his way to Jiraiya's house. As he strolled along the pathway, marvelling at the unusually high ratio of girls to boys, he noticed a girl in a tree wearing Kuoh's uniform. The girl appeared to be trying to look over a wall to the neighbouring hot springs via binoculars, leaving Naruto not entirely sure what to do.

"So… what are you doing up there?" Naruto called out, causing the girl to cry out in alarm and drop the binoculars she was using. Desperately flailing, the girl nearly lost her balance. Seeing her lack of stability, Naruto ran to catch her, but tripped over a branch and rolled into the bark of the tree with such force that it sent the unbalanced girl falling out of tree. She hit a branch that got caught on her panties and span the girl around before she continued her descent, leaving her panties behind like a bizarre flag fluttering in the breeze.

She landed atop of the dazed Naruto, her now exposed woman-hood pressed against his face and the two froze as they came to terms with their situation.

"S-So…" The girl coughed awkwardly. "That could have gone better."

"I can see it all…"

"Huh? Oh wow!" She suddenly jumped up as if only just noticing he was there. She helped Naruto to his feet with considerably less screaming and fewer accusations that he was expecting all things considered. "So sorry!" She bowed her head as if expecting a verbal berating.

Naruto sighed as he looked at her and without thinking patted her head. "There, there. No harm no foul right?"

"Eh?" She looked up at him and Naruto realised what he'd done. She'd looked so much like one of his litter sisters with the guilty, fearful look he had instinctively patted her head like he would to them. His innate big brother spirit had kicked in before he had chance to realise what he was doing.

"S-Sorry," Naruto laughed weakly. "I just…"

"Oh, it's fine," The girl beamed at him before tilted her head and humming. "Say… Are you by any chance…"?

"Is something wrong?" Naruto suddenly felt a chill as the girl looked at his bandaged left arm and her eyes widened.

"That arm… Could it be… Yeah… I think it is. Some sort of seal perhaps?" The girl looked deep in thought before looking straight at Naruto suspiciously, completely indifferent to the fact she had been sat on his face literally half a minute ago. "Yeah… I know what you are!" The girl smirked at him, running a hand through her short, messy, brown hair and her chocolate brown eyes twinkling in mirth. Now he got a good look at the girl he could see she had an athletic build with a light tan. She wore her uniform loosely, which rather than make her look scruffy gave her a hint of sexiness.

"You know what I am?" Naruto suddenly had a cold sweat. _'Is she one of the people who I was supposed to be careful about? Will she try and kill me?!'_

"You… Are a harem protagonist!" She pointed at him victoriously.

"I have no idea what… you…" Naruto trailed off. "Wait what?!"

"Oh, come on!" The girl beamed. "The way you managed to end up in a sexual position by _accident_ is a hallmark of a harem protagonist! Hey… You're that new employee at school aren't you! A lone male at a all girl's school! You are the poster boy of a Harem protagonist!"

"I'm not a harem protagonist." Naruto deadpanned.

"Hehe… This sort of destined meeting. There's no doubt in my mind you are!" The girl nodded sagely. "I should know I've read plenty of harem stories. You are here to start my route, right?"

"I have literally no idea what you are talking about right now."

"Finally, my springtime of youth is now!" The girl looked at the sky happily before freezing. "Wait… If he is a harem protagonist, then… this could be my chance to make lots of sisters!"

"Are you alright?" Naruto walked towards the mumbling girl who suddenly span to face him, catching the blonde by surprise.

"I know you are eager to start my route and win my heart, but is that really fair on the other girls in the harem?"

"What other girls?! What harem? Are you confusing me with someone else?"

"Isn't the only way to truly be fair to go for the harem route so everyone is happy?"

"I think you need to go to hospital, you have a concussion." Naruto took a step backwards, but the panty-less girl grabbed his hands.

"You can do it! Go for the harem ending! With my help we can have the large family of sisters I've always wanted!"

"I don't even know who you are," Naruto remarked dryly.

"Oh right," The girl laughed. "My name is Hyoudou Issei-chan! My three sizes are 84 – 60 – 86." Her excited bouncing caused her skirt to flutter and Naruto looked away. "I guess I'm sort of the athletic childhood friend type, but I can play the imouto type if you'd like. That sounds like it would be fun to do."

"First things first, you need to calm down. You're not wearing any underwear." He gestured vaguely in the direction of the tree and the excitable girl turned and let out a laugh.

"Oh, right." The now named Issei looked up at the tree. "Could you get them for me? I mean I would but… you know…" She pushed her skirt down.

"R-right." Naruto nodded as he climbed up the tree, grabbing the panties and binoculars before coming down, freezing as he saw a female police officer waiting for him at the bottom.

"Er…" Naruto looked at the panties and binoculars. "This isn't what it looks like?"

"You are so a harem protagonist!" Issei nodded, stars in her eyes as the police officer advanced on him. "Getting into all sorts of misunderstandings!"

"Wait… Why aren't you explaining what was going on here?!" He looked at Issei who tilted her head.

"Well I want to see what flags this could trigger." Issei remarked.

After a ten-minute discussion, Issei (now wearing her panties) and a drained Naruto were told they could leave with only a warning from the police officer.

"Hehe," Issei laughed gleefully as she walked alongside Naruto. "So, do you have any other girls whose routes you've started?"

"I think you're the girl I've spoken to most if that's what you're asking." Naruto gave up trying to correct the girl. It seemed like a waste of breath.

"Good! The harem route requires you to remain as neutral as possible," Issei smiled. "Oh… I just realised I don't even know your name!"

"Are you sure you don't have a concussion," Naruto sighed, "Uzumaki Naruto."

"Nice to meet you Naruto-kun!" Issei beamed. "What are your three sizes?"

"You want my bust size?" There was a confused expression on Naruto's face.

"Oh no. A man's three sizes are length, curvature and circumference!" The bubbly girl declared. "Of your dick of course."

"I'm not telling you that."

"That's fine. I'm a good guesser." She stared at his crotch intently causing him to shield himself.

"… You shouldn't go around doing things like that. The wrong kind of guy could get ideas."

"Don't worry." Issei declared confidently, "I'll only do it to you!"

Naruto find himself unable to think of a comeback so merely let out a tired sigh and started walking away, Issei following him cheerfully.

"So Hyoudou-san…"

"Call me Issei-chan," Issei interrupted.

"…Issei-chan," Naruto sighed. "Why were you in that tree with binoculars?"

"Isn't it obvious? I was peeking." She pushed her chest out proudly. "I have to be on the lookout for potential harem sisters!"

"You were peeking at girls…" Naruto was stunned by her honesty.

"You make it sound so dirty. I like to look at girls and figure out what it would be like to be in a harem with them."

"Why do you want to be in harem that much? If you like girls, you don't need to be with a guy as well you know."

"It's not like that. I…" There was a slightly downcast expression on her face before she recovered. "I just really, _really_ want a lot of sisters. The bonds between harem members make them practically sisters, right?"

"Well…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Listen I'm flattered you seem to think I am capable of helping you out here but… I really can't. Sorry."

"I…I totally get it." She was clearly hurt, given away by her forced smile, "Hahaha, Yeah I was just messing around. Anyway… Places to be and all that… It was nice meeting you. I… I'm sorry for bugging you. I'll leave you alone. Sorry." She started to walk away, bobbing her head apologetically whilst laughing in such an obviously forced fashion, it was physically painful for him to hear.

Naruto watched her slowly retreating figure with a soft frown. He knew that it was probably best to not get involved. Between his issues and the girl's odd personality, there was too much to unravel and it would only put the strange girl in danger if she were to hang around with Naruto. After all wasn't the reason he had left his family and friends behind so that no-one else got involved in his current predicament?

Naruto knew all this, but he also knew about acting out to get attention. Before he made his friends, he was a bit of a hellion desperate for attention. Maybe this Issei was just like he used to be. She made herself quirky to try and appeal to him in a desperate plea for a friend. What would Mito and Tsunade say in this situation?

' _Naru-nii… you left a girl in distress? You are disgusting! I hate you!'_ The boisterous voice of Tsunade exclaimed.

' _I thought Onii-sama was a true gentleman, but I was wrong. I have no male siblings.'_ The calm and cold voice of Mito cut through him like a blade.

As he watched her, he felt his big brother spirit react. This girl clearly had few friends if any and was just lonely and wanted someone to talk to. The moment he made that realisation there was only going to be one way this was going to end.

"Hey… Issei-chan," Naruto smiled as she turned to face him. "Do… Do you want to exchange numbers? I mean I might not be looking for a girlfriend or anything, but you can never have too many friends, right?"

"You… You want my number?" There was a shocked expression on her face, but in her eyes, Naruto saw a spark of hope.

"We'll need each other's numbers to stay in touch, won't we?" He grinned. "Besides I don't have any friends here and you seem like a good person to know."

The look of sheer happiness on her face reassured Naruto that he'd made the right decision, even if she did accuse him of being a tsundere.

As they went their separate ways, a cheerful Issei was practically skipping when she dialled a number on her phone.

"Hi there, Yuuma-chan!" Issei beamed. "I made another friend. This may sound awkward, but can he come with us this weekend? He can! Great! I'm sure you two will get on like a house on fire!" She closed the phone. "I know Naruto-kun's H.P.P. (Harem Protagonist Powers) will win Yuuma over too! This weekend will be lifechanging!"

She wasn't wrong.

* * *

"So… How was your first day of…" Jiraiya's joyous voice was cut off as he ducked under the coat Naruto had thrown at him. "That good huh?"

"What the actual hell?!" Naruto rounded on the unconcerned Jiraiya, who folded the Kuoh Academy coat over one arm before facing the angry youth with his usual cheerful expression. "I thought you told my father you were putting me in a school!"

"Did I lie?"

"Well maybe not, but you didn't tell the truth either!" Naruto countered. "You implied that you were sending me to a school to learn!"

"Oh, you'll still learn stuff," Jiraiya waved a hand dismissively, "Just not boring stuff like Geography and Maths." The fallen angel hung the coat on a wall before returning his attention to the confused looking blonde. "You see, it's one thing to get you physically ready for life in the magical world but if you are going to win over so many important people, you'll need to know how to talk to them."

"That… makes sense," Naruto begrudgingly admitted. "But what about my education? My mum would kill me if she knew I wasn't preparing for a future career. If she knew about this she'd probably drag me back home…"

"Well, you are thinking of your future," Jiraiya pointed out. "Can't have a career if you're dead and if she were to drag you back home, it would put her and the rest of your friends and family in danger so maybe we should keep what we tell her to a minimum alright?"

"Yeah," Naruto nodded. He had resolved himself that no-one he cared about would get themselves involved in his struggles. It was better this way. Worst case scenario the old pervert would be the only one who died with Naruto and honestly, he was fine with that.

As if sensing Naruto's thoughts, Jiraiya scowled briefly before clapping his hands together to get Naruto's attention. "So, we are in agreement then?"

"I guess," Naruto frowned as he collapsed into one of the comfy chairs in the living room while Jiraiya took his usual spot nearest the fire. "Well then, what do you have to teach me then?"

"Well…" Jiraiya stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I have no idea."

"I should have expected that," Naruto started to get up.

"Now wait a second!" Jiraiya coughed awkwardly. "What I meant is there is so much I need to teach you that I don't know where to start." He walked over to the large book case, checking a few books before nodding and pulling an old looking tome from the shelf. It appeared to be a thick stack of papers held together with twine and rough looking wooden covers. He returned to his comfy seat and slowly opened the book. "I suppose we should start with the damage the Nephilim caused. It would explain why all the factions won't be happy when they find out you're alive."

"Sure," Naruto shrugged, not really caring either way.

Taking this as a sign to go ahead, Jiraiya showed Naruto the page in the book. It was a similar drawing to the one over his fireplace, with a giant eye being attacked by three armies but as if on command, the images started to move across the page, portraying a brutal battle. After a few minutes, the eye finally closed but less than 20% of the original armies remained. With a click of his fingers, Jiraiya reset the scene and put the book down.

"It was that much of a slaughter?"

"Yeah, but it wasn't just how many but who we lost as well. I already told you about the Creator being destroyed in the attempt to seal the Nephilim. No one saw it, but we all felt it, like the sun suddenly vanished in the middle of the day." Jiraiya shivered. "There were more than a few angels who fell when feeling that, even some of those who had stayed in Heaven. Initially there were around 1 million or so true Angels in heaven and fighting in the wars. That's not including cherubs, Seraphs or ascended Saints. Have you ever heard the phrase that everyone has a guardian angel?"

"Yeah," Naruto nodded.

"Well… It used to be true back when Judaism had just started. They were usually high ranked cherubs, but still angelic beings. Human population wasn't as insane as it is now but there was still hell of a lot of angels constantly on Earth." Jiraiya sighed, "You must have been looking at… say 5,000,000 angels in total at the time of the Nephilim attack. After the Nephilim first was born… all Angels that weren't at risk of falling were deployed. In the final battle there was probably just shy of four million angels. Can you imagine that sight…" Jiraiya's voice went a bit distant, "Four million angels all resplendent in His Glory… The Nephilim's first attack halved that number. I can still see their feathers falling to the ground as we tried to process just what had happened." His voice went silent.

"Holy…" Naruto bit back a curse.

"Yeah…" Jiraiya let off a sad sigh before clearing his throat and resuming his story, "After the final battle, the remaining angels that hadn't fallen was around 590 thousand-ish. The Forces of Heaven were crippled, so much so that in desperation they looked for ways to recruit more angels but long story short, even this long after the Nephilim was sealed, Heaven's forces are probably barely 2 million and as most of them are uplifted humans, they don't compare to the original Angels created by Him."

"So, Heaven is still recovering and may never fully recover," Naruto frowned.

"Yup," Jiraiya nodded. "It's why they are so fierce when it comes protecting the church. Faith is the only thing stopping them from getting wiped out by the Devils and Fallen Angels. Anything that could challenge their established system must be destroyed. Be it a heretic or a being that was stronger than the Creator. This makes the Four Seraph's doubly difficult to convince you aren't a threat."

"I see," Naruto scowled. "How about the Fallen Angels, do they have a similar issue with me?"

"Well…" Jiraiya chuckled softly, "The Fallen Angels… They are not as unified as the other factions. There are quite a few like me who have no loyalties to Azazel. Quite a few Fallen Angels just revel in whatever it was that made them fall but most of those who fell when He was lost all follow Azazel, seeking redemption for failing Him. There are some extremists who believe that the Angels who didn't fall are traitors to Him, as they didn't care enough that they failed in their duty. Many blame the Creator's weakness for the current situation and wonder why He bestowed salvation on His creations while letting His most loyal children fall."

"What made you fall?" Naruto asked.

"…I killed a lot of innocent Angels," Jiraiya shook his head. "They were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. But if I could go back in time… I'd do it again."

"Ah…" The mood in the room became awkward and the young blonde struggled to think of something to say, but fortunately Jiraiya had millennia to come to terms with his actions and quickly brightened up again.

"Of the three factions, the Fallen came out of the Nephilim Crisis the best. Seeing as before then they weren't even an organised faction. I'd reckon there are about 1 million fallen angels, most of which have pledged allegiance to First among the Fallen, Azazel. He shouldn't be that hard to convince as the Fallen Angels are the underdogs and would probably like you on their side. Still with a faction as fractured as they are, you might need to win over several different lesser commanders as well who might not be as easy to win over."

"Wait… Wasn't Lucifer the first fallen Angel?" Naruto screwed up his face, clearly struggling to remember some past lesson from his ex-priest father.

"The first Lucifer was, but he married a devil and after time, any Fallen angel traces were gone from his genealogy leaving just a family of Devils." Jiraiya nodded. "It was before I was created but I heard all the stories from those who were there. Michael was furious with Lucifer for betraying our Father but for him to sire an heir with Devils was the ultimate transgression against His will. I imagine that was when reconciliation became impossible. That or when Michael killed him." Jiraiya shrugged.

"So why wasn't his children Nephilim then?" Naruto frowned.

"Nephilim aren't born naturally," Jiraiya shrugged. "It is impossible to have a creature be both Angelic and Demonic. A soul can only be one alignment."

"Then what about me?" Naruto asked.

"Well…" Jiraiya rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "There is a lot we still don't understand about you and I haven't had much time to do a proper investigation. Think of it like this, we can discover more about you together!" The pervert gave a thumbs up, letting out a bark of laughter as the disgusted Naruto got out of the chair.

"I'm working on that spell book again," Naruto called over his shoulder as he left Jiraiya alone. The moment Naruto was out of sight, Jiraiya's face clouded over as he sadly remembered the day he lost so many friends.

* * *

"Put your back into it!" The stern maid who was apparently Naruto's sempai, crossed her arms and glared at the exhausted Naruto. Try as he might he couldn't remember her name, having been too annoyed at Jiraiya to pay much attention to his orientation meeting so mentally labelled her Maid-sempai.

Unaware of her co-worker's thought process, Maid-sempai glanced at her watch before tutting nosily. She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and brushed a lock of her black hair behind her ear before focusing her coal black eyes on the youth. "We are support staff for Kuoh Academy. Heiresses of the Rich and Famous walk these halls! Do you think this work is acceptable?!"

"With all due respect," The frustrated Naruto scowled at the maid. "This is a toilet. It is as clean as it is ever going to be. I would eat my dinner out of it, it is that clean!"

"Are you some sort of pervert who gets a kick out of eating food from a girl's toilet?" There was a clear look of disgust on her face.

"…If I say yes, will you make sure I never have to work in a girl's toilet again?" Naruto asked hopefully, but the scoffing noise as the maid left for yet another cigarette break shattered any illusions that he would be getting out of this job. Picking up the brush, he looked at his weary reflection in the toilet before getting back to work, grumbling under his breath.

The only consolation is that the school used western toilets, so at least Naruto could sit down and take a break while the overbearing maid went to have her break. He heard some footsteps approaching, but thought nothing of it, knowing that there was a sign warning any girls that the toilets were being cleaned.

"Oh… It looks like they are shut," A quiet voice murmured, but in the silence of the bathroom it was possible for Naruto to hear her. There was the sound of footsteps and Naruto realised the girl had walked into the bathroom before freezing, almost as if she could sense him.

He considered hiding, then realised that would make him seem more suspicious so opened the door with a polite smile.

"I'm sorry but I'm cleaning these toilets right now." Naruto looked at the girl who had entered. She was small, roughly the same size as his little sisters and looked at him with a cold stare. While he found her white hair unusual, he was more worried about that judging stare. "Er… I'm the cleaner… I'm not a pervert!"

"I see." The girl spoke quietly and emotionlessly, before walking into one of the cubicles and shutting the door.

"Er…" Naruto blinked. "I'll er…" He looked around, not entirely sure how to react to this small girl. He then realised that since he was a cleaner, and she knew he was there, she had given him her unvoiced approval to continue working. Satisfied with this logic, he returned to the toilet stall he was working on and started to clean once more. No sooner had he started when he heard a splashing noise from the next cubicle.

Trying not to think about it, he started to clean the bottom of the toilet and, purely by coincidence, looked underneath the adjourning stall. There were two slender legs with a pair of cute neko print panties around the ankles.

Feeling like a criminal, Naruto quickly got up and started to work on the toilet again. _'I mean it was an accident, right? It wasn't as if I wanted to see that girl's panties. She's basically the same as my little sisters, right? I've seen their underwear plenty of times and it never bothered me, even when Tsunade tried to stuff a pair in my mouth.'_ Satisfied he wasn't a bad person, he returned to his previous position, only to find two suspicious eyes looking at him.

"…"

"…H-Hi there." Naruto smiled. "Just, er… Just cleaning," He made a show of wiping the floor near the toilet as the judging eyes locked onto him.

"…Disgusting." The cold voice remarked before the girl got up and left the stall, leaving Naruto laughing hollowly as he absent-mindedly polished the same tile, stuck in that position for the remaining ten minutes of his sempai's work break, who returned to find him staring at the floor despondently, that one tile glowing brightly.

"Well, you have the work ethic I guess. We just need to improve your speed," The maid did a once over on the toilet and begrudgingly accepted its condition as good enough. "Now for the next one."

"N-Next one?" Naruto blinked. "But… That one has just been used?"

"They're toilets… They've all been used," The Maid deadpanned as she dragged Naruto into the next cubicle. Overseen by his sempai, the young blonde tried to shake off the feeling he was committing some sort of sin by repeatedly rubbing the seat that the girl had been sat on, even if it was his job.

Outside the bathroom, the small girl walked up to an anhydrous youth who was stood staring out of the window. If not for the fact this was a girl's school, one would assume it was a boy stood waiting for the small girl, especially given the trousers and blazer that they wore.

"Kiba-san," Came the soft voice of the young girl.

"Koneko-san," Kiba smiled in response to her words, looking like a prince taken straight from a Shoujo manga. "Is everything alright?"

"I saw the one Rias-sempai mentioned," Koneko paused to look at the toilets.

"I see," Kiba's eyes narrowed and they reached for their waist, as if to draw a sword only they could see, "Did he try anything?"

"He saw my panties." Koneko remarked bluntly. "He is a useless pervert and not a threat." With nothing else to say she walked away.

"I… I see…" Kiba laughed weakly before following her.

* * *

Somewhere a fair few miles away, there was a phone sat on a table. This phone was largely unimportant, just a standard wireless house phone placed in a charging cradle on a table in a large dining room. It was a completely innocent scene with nothing worth mentioning about it. It was just a phone sat there, silently, minding its own business in a quiet house.

It had been a good phone and had served its owners well. It was a shame that such a loyal phone was soon to be destroyed for no reason other than doing its job.

It rang.

There was a sudden explosion of movement and two blurs raced into the room. One from the kitchen and the other from the next room. These two blurs snatched the phone at the same time and each tried to take the phone, resulting in each blur taking half of the phone, pausing then preparing to blame the other for the broken phone.

Now that they had stopped moving, it was clear to see the two young girls glaring at each other. One of them had her shoulder length blonde hair in a short ponytail. She was wearing a pal green tank top and trousers and had brown eyes, currently glaring at the other girl. This was Tsunade Uzumaki, Naruto's little sister and the oldest of the twins. "What the heck you do that for Mito?! Naru-nii was probably ringing to tell me who much he missed me and that he was coming back home to marry me!"

The other girl scoffed at this. She had bright red hair, much like her mother although hers was tied up in a bun on her right side with pins in it, whilst the left-hand side had a long trail of hair that fell to her waist. Unlike the casual attire of her twin, she was wearing a neat school uniform with a vivid green bow. It was the uniform of the school that Naruto was supposed to be attending and that she had gone to, despite having far better grades. "Did you say something, you boorish individual? My beloved Onii-sama was probably trying to ring me to inform me that I was required at his side and now thanks your brutish idiocy, I cannot respond to his urgent plea."

"Why would Naru-nii want to talk to you? Unless he was planning on telling you that he loves me, so you should stop interfering!"

"I apologise, I clearly struck your head and gave you a concussion. For you to believe my Onii-sama would want to be with you? Preposterous!" Mito's calm voice were a completely at odds with the anger in her eyes.

"Girls, play nice," A tired Minato walked in, putting a new phone on the table. "This is the last phone so please don't break it. I get that you miss Naruto but there are better ways for you to deal with it. And before you ask, no that wasn't Naruto."

"Dearest father," Mito bowed her head slightly. "I apologise for this ruffian's crude outbursts. Is it not possible to send her to a zoo or something where she can be with her fellow simple-minded primates?"

"Dad! She's saying stuff that I think is an insult!" Tsunade scowled. "Tell her to stop or I'll punch her!"

"How primitive, is there any wonder Onii-sama had to leave. Being related to such a brute was clearly putting too much strain on him, to the point where he had to leave in the night rather than face the disgrace."

"Maybe it was a certain someone who scared him away with all her sinister scheming?" Tsunade pointed out.

"It is my duty as Onii-sama's future bride to ensure the best life for both of us. If that means scaring off a few unwanted pests, then I shall do my duty gladly. At least I didn't try and force my beloved Onii-sama to eat my underwear."

"I… I read somewhere that big brothers would use their sister's panties to… you know…" Tsunade grumbled. "Satisfy their appetite. It was in a book!"

"How base," Mito turned to Minato, who was currently wondering where Kushina and he went wrong. "Have you heard this foul cretin?"

"Hello everyone!" A cheerful voice headed off the argument and a beaming Kushina entered the room. "Naruto just text me to let us all know he is doing well. With any luck he'll be back before we know it."

"Onii-sama must be so lonely," Mito bit her lip. "Mayhap I should send him pictures of myself so that he may be warmed by the heat of my love, despite our bodies being distant."

"Apparently he's made a friend of sorts too. Issei apparently." Kushina frowned. "Is that a girl's name or a boy's?"

"Sounds like a boy," Tsunade nodded, her attitude very similar to her mother's. "After all, why would he need a female friend when he has me waiting for him at home!"

"But what if this boy is a bad influence," Mito frowned. "He may tell Onii-sama things like…. Like it is wrong to love his sweet sister Mito…"

"A bad influence," Kushina blinked. "Like maybe getting involved in shady dealings and getting him hooked on drugs?!" She glanced at her husband, her eyes ablaze with concern. "Minato! Start the car, my baby needs me!"

"Naruto is fine," Minato reassured his wife, kissing her on the cheek.

"Right, you are right of course," Kushina nodded. "Oh, another text. He says this Issei-chan is a bit weird, but she seems friendly enough… Wait she?"

"She?!" Tsunade paled before punching the table. "That hussy! I have to go and save Naru-nii from her schemes!"

"It appears a meddlesome insect has appeared," Mito frowned. "Dearest father, I would like to request that you drive us to where Onii-sama (and this homewrecking wench) may be located?"

"She's probably getting my innocent little boy to do all sorts of horrible things. My baby's purity is in danger! Minato! The Car!"

Minato took a sip of his coffee and let out a sigh. Kushina was such an overprotective parent at times.

"I'm coming Naru-nii!" Tsunade yelled at the half of a phone she was still holding.

"Why don't you go and talk to your boyfriend," Mito remarked with a sneer. "Leave Onii-sama to me, his future bride."

"Boyfriend?!" Minato dropped his cup of coffee. "Tsu-hime has a boyfriend?!"

"He confessed to me, but I turned him down!" Tsunade protested. "I am going to marry Naru-nii!"

"His name," Minato smiled an eerie smile. "I feel I need to have a talk with this… young gentleman." He robotically walked towards the car. He knew what boys at that age wanted. And with his daughter? Not a chance. He would put the fear of God into this boy.

All in all, it was just your average day in the Uzumaki household.

* * *

"And finished," Naruto wiped his brow and let out a happy sigh. He was currently cleaning a hallway on the top floor of one of the buildings. As he looked out of the window he could see the cheerful girls of Kuoh academy running around the track. It was the start of his third day and Naruto felt like he was beginning to get into some sort of routine.

Today was a particularly pleasant sight as he watched Akeno and Rias stretching out. Those two girls were really something else, Naruto thought as he leaned on his mop, before shaking his head and returning to his work.

Maid-sempai had been called away on another errand and Naruto had been left to work in peace. This corridor was the route to the School Council's clubroom and was very rarely used, especially during lesson time, so Naruto was able to relax a little. Still he knew that if he was to stay at this school, he couldn't slack off too much. He needed to make a good impression so that if Jiraiya was right and there were devils here, they would see he was a good hard worker and not some potential world ending monster.

As he mopped the hallway, the doors to the student council office opened and a stern looking woman stepped out. She had long black hair that fell to her knees but what was more striking was her heterochromatic eyes that glanced at him behind her glasses. Her left eye was violet, but her right one was brown, and the sight was so unique that he couldn't help but stare. She raised an eyebrow quizzically and Naruto apologised, realising how creepy that must have been. She was wearing the Kuoh uniform and was a very attractive woman, although outshone by Rias and Akeno, who had started jogging lightly and were visible out of the corner of Naruto's eye.

"You are Uzumaki Naruto-san, correct?" The girl glanced at a small clipboard she was holding, "The new janitor."

"That's right!" He nodded, "Pleased to meet you…" He trailed off, but the girl apparently didn't get the hint, only looking at the clipboard and writing something down before looking at Naruto again.

After an uncomfortably long pause, she finally spoke again. "Shinra Tsubaki. I am Shitori-san's Vice president. The president has overlooked your… youth and unusual circumstances and trusted you to work here professionally. Should you act in away that would reflect badly on her, I will take action, understood?"

"Y-yeah," Naruto nodded with a weak smile.

"Personally, I am… conflicted about your recruitment. You have only been here a brief time and already the students appear to be getting distracted. I've had some reports of you being intimidating and yelling at your mop, your supervisor has flagged you as 'Needs Improvement' and we had reports of someone who looked a lot like you being caught with binoculars in a tree." She looked at Naruto suspiciously, "Care to comment?"

"Err…" Naruto smiled weakly. "It was all a misunderstanding. I'm not some sort of super pervert or anything!"

"I see," It was quite clear that the girl stood before him didn't believe him. "And we have also had reports of a young man hanging around in the girl's toilets. Care to offer an explanation, Not-a-pervert-san?"

"I was doing my job!" Naruto protested loudly. "I was asked to clean the girl's toilets and I did!"

"Who in their right mind would send a boy to clean the girl's toilets? Especially a strange, uncouth boy who shows up out of nowhere begging to be hired."

"I don't remember begging," Naruto mumbled.

"I shall inform the president of this and request that in future, only female staff work in the girl's bathroom."

"That's fine by me," Naruto shrugged.

"Good," There was a bit of an awkward silence as Naruto fidgeted under the gaze of the Vice President.

"Is there anything else?" Naruto offered.

"Not yet," Tsubaki nodded coldly and started towards the stairs at the end of the corridor but lost her footing on the wet floor.

"Be careful the floor is wet," Naruto warned.

Tsubaki stopped to comment, but as she turned she slipped, falling backwards down the stairs.

What happened next seemed to start in slow motion for Naruto. He ran to try and help the unbalanced girl yet slipped on the very floor he had warned her about. As he slipped uncontrollably towards her, Tsubaki managed to straighten herself out, only to be struck by the skidding Naruto causing the two of them to fall down the stairs.

Almost instinctively, Naruto wrapped his arms around the surprised vice-president and tried to shield her from the fall down the stairs, clinging to her tightly and choosing to focus on the soft sensation of her breasts against his chest rather than the sharp and painful blows from the stairs.

They crashed into the wall at the bottom of the stairs and Naruto released the vice president, who tried to stand but found her legs buckle and she fell back down, her skirt lifted and her top open, revealing a very conservative yet matching white bra and panties set. Naruto turned to ask if she was alright and got an eyeful.

The two sat in silence, Naruto shocked by how the girl made something so simple look so sexy, while Tsubaki slowly reddened, although whether this was from embarrassment or anger was anyone's guess.

"W-w-where do you think you are looking?!" The girl blushed furiously as she quickly pulled up her skirt and corrected her shirt. The cold and judging tone of her voice how replaced by a fiery embarrassment/rage mix.

"W-well…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head but before he could defend himself, the once stoic vice president ran off, tears in her eyes and her face bright red. "…I'm totally getting fired for this aren't I?" His shoulders slumped. "Didn't even last a week." He laughed hollowly and stared into space.

"Vice president!" A familiar voice exclaimed, shortly before its owner wandered into Naruto's view. "Ah! I'm guessing I upset her by interrupting her precious Harem time! Sorry Naruto-kun! Next time text me when you are having some fun, so I don't ruin it. If it makes you feel better, you can squeeze my breasts."

"Issei-chan," Naruto smiled weakly as the bouncy girl helped him to his feet. "I'm sorry… This is probably our last conversation."

"Naruto-kun? You don't look so good," She frowned. "We should take you to the infirmary! Don't worry I won't let you die!" Her face lit up. "Plus, you should really meet the new nurse, she has the hot Onee-sama vibe going on for her!"

"I… That might be a good idea actually," Naruto remarked as he tested a stinging part of his head and found blood. "I… I don't feel so good."

* * *

Even after seeing Fallen Angels, Naruto still wouldn't call himself religious, although at this point it was more his stubborn nature than anything else. Yet when Issei lead him into the pure white infirmary and he saw her. He was pretty sure he had died.

There was an angel waiting for his soul. Her beautiful face made him feel like he was ready to pass on. It was odd, Naruto thought as she fussed over him, her abundant breasts pushing into him through the white lab coat she was wearing. He wouldn't say she was the most attractive person he had seen. Tsubaki was more attractive to him but there was just something about her that made Naruto feel… content.

"I see," The nurse stepped backwards and turned to Issei. "Please put him on a bed! It looks like Uzumaki-san has a nasty head wound."

With the harem fanatics assistance, Naruto clambered onto one of the infirmary beds and looked around the room. There were several beds, all separated by curtains and the usual fair for an infirmary. There were content murmurs from many beds and Naruto assumed he was not the only one caught in this field of happiness. The only thing that struck Naruto as unusual was the small girl sat in a chair glaring at him. She was the spitting image of the nurse, only a lot younger but was wearing the same lab coat as her sister, only the sleeves were too long so they completely covered her arms with the limp sleeves hanging over the chair's armrests. Initially she seemed surprised that Naruto was looking at her before sticking her tongue out at him.

"You must have had a nasty tumble," The nurse planted a soft kiss on the back of his head, and Naruto felt better instantly. "I hope you feel better."

"I feel a lot better already," Naruto glanced at Issei, only to find she had left, probably so she 'didn't interfere with his harem building efforts' or whatever it was she said. "Hyuuga-sensei."

The Chibi mimed shooting Naruto with a bow, so he mimed catching the arrow and tossing it aside. The nurse looked between Naruto and the girl with a shocked expression, with a sudden smile as it appeared she had realised something.

"Please just call me Hinata," Hinata smiled softly at him. "We are work colleagues after all. I only started a few months ago myself. I trust my little sister isn't bothering you."

"Oh right, thanks Hinata-san," Naruto grinned stupidly as Hinata leaned over him to check his injuries, resulting in her ample breasts pressing into his stomach. "It's okay. She's only a little girl so I know she is just bored."

"Get that perverted look off of your face!" The chibi suddenly exploded and used a slingshot to fire dry beans at Naruto. "Evil out! Evil out!"

"You're way out of season there," Naruto grumbled as Hinata walked over to the little girl.

"He's a bad man Onee-sama!" The girl looked at Hinata who smiled and patted her head, calming the little girl down.

"Sorry about this little Cherub. Apologise to Naruto-san, Hanabi-chan."

"Sorry," It was clear by her tone and look, that she was anything but. "I won't do it again."

"Isn't everything much better when we all work together?" Hinata clapped her hands together before returning to Naruto, checking him for injuries. "How did you fall down the stairs Uzumaki-san?"

"Oh, I was just trying to stop someone else from falling since it was kind of my fault that she did." Naruto yawned sleepily. This bed was soft, as where the breasts of Hinata as she leaned over him to adjust the sheets. He suddenly felt like he just wanted to sleep and let the cheerful nurse take care of him. As he felt himself drifting off, there was sudden shooting pain and his mind cleared instantly. The pain had seemed to come from within himself but after feeling it, his mind was clear.

There was a confused look on the face of the nurse, followed by a wide smile, "You seem energetic for someone who fell down the stairs. Maybe your injuries were not as bad as I feared."

Trying his best to ignore the chibi who was pulling faces at him, Naruto allowed the nurse to check him out once more.

"How peculiar… All your wounds have healed." The nurse frowned, and Naruto started to feel uncomfortable as she trailed a finger across the back of his head where he had been bleeding. "Oh well, maybe the wounds were less severe than I thought."

"Yes, that is definitely it." Naruto sprang out of bed laughing, "Man I feel amazing. Like better than before I was hurt. I feel full of energy!"

"Well that is just fantastic," A voice dripping sarcasm declared, and Naruto turned to see Maid-sempai stood there, with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "I'm glad you have so much energy kouhai… As we have so much work that _you_ need to do."

A protesting Naruto was dragged away, watched by Hinata and Hanabi. After a few moments, the small girl turned to her older sister.

"Why are you smiling like that?" She asked sulkily. "I don't like him. He liked feeling your breasts! I could tell."

"I suspect he is the one we were waiting for." Was all that Hinata said as she patted her little sister on the head. "One way or another, we shall see."

* * *

When Naruto returned to Jiraiya's house, any elation he had been feeling had faded, replaced by the certainty that he was getting fired tomorrow. One or two events maybe he could have been explained away as coincidence but if there were reports of him being accosted by the police as well, it certainly didn't look good and that was before he had unintentionally stared at the vice president when she had her underwear on display after pushing her down some stairs. The poor girl had been avoiding him all day and he was unable to apologise to her and given the 'no nonsense' attitude that Souna seemed to have, there was no way he could talk his way out of being fired.

The instant he opened the door to his current abode, Jiraiya was there to redraw the seals and noticed his demeanour. Being the tactful and caring guardian angel, he was, Jiraiya knew exactly what to say.

"Well you look like crap," The fallen angel laughed, "Did she turn you down?"

"Who?" A confused expression shot over Naruto's face.

"The girl you were texting last night?"

"The girl… Wait a second have you been reading my text messages?!" Naruto froze up.

"I was hoping you were sexting some cute girl and I could get her to send you pictures," Jiraiya replied dismissively. "But you were talking about boring crap. And I was so hopeful when she mentioned stuff about a harem." He let out a disappointed sigh.

"Stop reading my private messages!" Naruto glared at the old pervert.

"Hey, my job is to keep you safe. How can I do that if you go ahead and let some stranger into my house?" Jiraiya protested. "Plus, if you were planning to sneak a girl in, I need to know so I can make myself scarce. I have seals that show me what is going on in all rooms of this house. Trust me, watching two teenagers fucking like rabbits isn't on my to do list… Well not when you are one of them anyway."

"…All rooms?" Naruto froze. "Even my bedroom?"

"It's perfectly normal and I don't watch you." Jiraiya smiled, "Although if you want some new magazines I can buy you a few. I going to look into getting some Wi-Fi now I have some money coming in."

"You have a job?" Naruto quickly leapt on the first topic change he was presented with.

"Well I am an author, although I haven't published any books yet. I needed the money to buy supplies and so on before I could start."

"Then where are you… getting money… from…" Naruto trailed off as it suddenly occurred to him. "Your taking my wages, aren't you?! I'm slaving over a cold mop and you are getting rich off my labour?!"

"Think of it as a rent payment, as well as food and tuition fees," Jiraiya waved off his anger, "Speaking of which, do you want another lesson? I never told you what the state of the Devil clans are did I?"

"Devil Clans?" Naruto asked, deciding to come back to his wages at a later point. Right now, he needed all the information he could get to save his own life and by extension the lives of those who he interacted with.

"Before we start, summarise what I told you last time." Jiraiya tried his best to look scholarly.

"The angels hate me because I am better than God and Fallen Angels hate everyone, themselves most of all." Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

"Amazing," Jiraiya shook his head. "That was almost correct apart from everything you just said but I don't have time to correct you today. Read the damn book," Jiraiya gestured to the bookshelf. "But do it in your own time because I am bored of talking about Angels and want to move onto Devils."

"Your teaching is about as strong as your moral compass," Naruto deadpanned but raised no objections.

"I won't go back too far, as it really doesn't matter where the first Devils came from and no-one can agree on it anyway. What we know is modern Devils are essentially the inverse of Angels. Whereas Angels gain power from Faith, it weakens Devils, so they actively seek to undermine the Faith wherever they can. It used to be hard before the Creator was… well you know," Jiraiya shook his head sadly, "Now it is harder to keep the faithful, so the Devils don't really try and corrupt anyone anymore. They'll just wait for people to come to them instead but don't think this means they are doing well. There used to be 72 Great Demon clans prior to the Nephilim. Dare to guess how many still remain?"

"If the angels were anything to go by I'd say maybe ten?" Naruto suggested with a shrug.

"33," Jiraiya remarked. "Which does make it seem like they got off lightly doesn't it? The only reason that figure is so high is because most families made sure they left a Male Heir behind to carry on the clan but infighting between old rivals resulted in the weaker heirs being killed off during the purge of old Hell. At their height a clan would consist of a main family, several branch families and countless bastards raised as servants. Now a clan is essentially a small family unit. Marriage contracts between the 33 are common, to ensure the purity of the devil race but to maintain a force capable of opposing Heaven, they have plenty of half-breed or resurrected devils to fill out the ranks, much like Heaven's forces. Technically speaking the Devils are doing the best of the three clans, but the fact the Fallen are more hostile to Devils than Angels means that there is a delicate power balance in play, which is part of the reason that the Pact of the Nephilim is still in effect today."

"Didn't you mention Four Satans or something? If there are 33 clans then how do those four come into it."

"By becoming a Satan, they effectively forfeit their right to rule a clan, becoming independent and part of the ruling council of Hell. You win the hearts of the Satans, the rest of the clans and devil kind will fall into place." Jiraiya finished his lecture with a yawn. "Most of the clans have some sort of gimmick that you need to be wary of. Just try not to pick a fight with the Phenex clan. Those bastards are ridiculously difficult to kill." Jiraiya winced, "Invulnerability is their gimmick, along with fire and birds, you know all the mythical Phoenix crap."

"That's a thought," Naruto frowned. "If all this Christianity stuff is real, does that mean the other religions are wrong?"

"Nope, they are all right, to some extent." Jiraiya chuckled, "Did you think I have all those symbols out there because I think they look good?"

"Honestly, I thought you were trying to scare people off," Naruto shivered.

"Well, there is that as well," He conceded. "But yeah, somewhere out there you could find the realm of the Greek Gods, although they are all pretty weak given the lack of faith in them. They'd probably pass for weak even by human standards. Their monsters are all real and very much alive as well, although they are considerably stronger and tend to reside in special areas. The advantage of not relying on faith I suppose. Don't ask me where they came from either. It's outside my area of expertise."

"Do they care about me?" Naruto asked.

"Kid, you have the potential to become as strong as something that killed the Creator. These dime-a-dozen, forgotten Pantheons are probably creaming themselves at the thought of having you under their control. I wouldn't be surprised if Aphrodite herself is reading the Karma Sutra looking for ways to turn you into her mindless servant. Well I would but that's only because everyone should think you're dead, but the point still stands. When your survival becomes public knowledge, your life is going to get interesting. You'll probably have Aphrodite riding you like a bucking bronco…" There was a distant look in his eyes.

"Jiraiya?" Naruto waved a hand in front of his face, but the perverted hermit was out of it.

"Ishtar stripped down and begging for your seed while Nanaya gently licks your naked chest." Jiraiya started to giggle perversely. "Maybe even Bastet would show up as a cute neko girl~"

"You're weirding me out right now…"

"Freya whispering sweet nothings whilst Frigg uses her amazing breasts…" Jiraiya whispered before giggling. "Lofn getting involved as well, making out with Frigg as they work together to bring you to climax." Suddenly Jiraiya angrily glared at Naruto. "Why the hell do you get all the sexy goddesses huh? Why couldn't _I_ be the Nephilim you bastard!"

"I… I am lost for words," Naruto shook his head, although there was a bit of a spring in his step as he went to his room to work on his magic studies. After all what teenage boy wouldn't like to be the target of several attractive goddesses desperate for his loyalty. It was almost enough to distract him from the real threat of Angel or Devil Assassins and the fact he may have gotten himself fired.

* * *

When people think of heaven, they probably think of wide-open fields or some luxurious estates, so it would probably be a bit disappointing for anyone who thought that to see the current room in which the Four Seraphs of the throne of Heaven were currently located. It could have passed as a meeting room in pretty much any set of offices the world over, if not for the clearly angelic nature of the four beings sat at the table, or the multitude of smaller, less winged angels hovering around the fringes of the room.

One of the four seated at the table stood up slowly, and silence descended on the room, smothering the excited whisperings. It was very unusual for Michael, current master of the Faith System, to call a meeting, never mind demanding it immediately. When the silence had finally filled the room. The standing angel cleared his throat.

"I bring grave tidings." His voice carried a gravitas that almost demanded you listen, in fact many of those gathered were compelled to bow their heads on hearing the voice, deeming themselves as unworthy of gazing upon the speaker and his golden wings. His long blonde hair and kind face marked him out as Michael. "There are ripples in the world of man and they bring grave tidings."

"With all due respect brother, that was apparent when you called us all here for an instant meeting," One of the other angels, Uriel, responded.

"Indeed, such a thing has not happened… Not since the Beast." Raphael, the third angel, added his thoughts. On mentioning the 'Beast' the entire room fell silent with some even sobbing softly, as if just mentioning its name was enough to bring back the sense of loss of that war.

"Indeed," Michael looked at his two brothers and lone sister. "I fear the Cursed Child yet lives."

"Impossible," Uriel raised his voice over the gasps of the assembled angels. "You personally saw to the creature's destruction. Did you not?"

"Indeed." Michael nodded. "I… I believed that was the case. However, I fear I may have not been successful. Several days ago, for just a brief instant, the oracles reported a spike of energy that triggered many of our warning systems and first response units on Earth. The unique Beast-kin signature of the Cursed child."

"The creature is on Earth," The horror in Raphael's voice was clear for all to see. "This… This complicates matters."

"Brothers," There was a soft, soothing voice and the fourth angel stood up, smiling sadly. "Are we even sure that this is the Cursed Child?" Just by looking at her, even the other Seraph's felt their cares melting away. She was the most beautiful woman in heaven, the golden-haired Gabriel.

"Gabriel," Michael smiled at his sister, "Ever a calming presence when others overreact, but in this case, I fear your optimism is unwarranted. We cannot allow another Beast to rise, we… we barely survived the first time."

"If we take action now, there is every chance the Fallen and the Devils will take that as a sign we have broken the treaty and attack us," Uriel leaned back in his chair. "We do not have the manpower to fight a costly war."

"I have to agree with brother Uriel," Raphael shook his head. "We cannot stage a massive invasion to deal with this threat, not without liaising with the other factions."

"And how do we not know the other factions are planning to use him in their hubris? The Devils are a race that despised Father and everything He stood for. They could be planning to destroy the land of his children as an act of spite!" Michael looked at his siblings. "I have presented my case and would put it to a vote. I say we send an elite crew of angels to investigate. Should they find the Cursed Child, they are to destroy it. Should they find anyone who knows anything about it, they are to question them, using any methods possible. We move first, ask for forgiveness later. Given the severity of this case, I will only move if we _all_ agree this is the case."

"I… I agree," Uriel nodded his head. "It is not an easy decision to make but if we move quickly, we can patch things over with the other factions."

"I also agree," Raphael sighed. "I shall send messages to the other factions, so at least we can claim there must have been some sort of delay and we thought we gave the adequate time to raise any objections.

"Sister?" Michael looked at the last member of the four.

"I was there," She whispered softly. "The first wave… All four million of us descending on that… that thing." A tear rolled down her cheek. "I should had died, but one of my cherubs saw the attack and managed to blast me clear of it. I watched as just under half our entire race was… erased. There was nothing save the few feathers of the fallen that had been outside the beam's area of effect. I lost so many of my brothers and sisters… I will not allow that to happen again."

"Then we are in agreement," Michael nodded.

"No."

"…What?" The other Seraphs froze in confusion.

"Yes, there is a chance that the Cursed Child is on Earth, but you said yourself that it was a momentary flicker that our Oracles spotted." Gabriel shook her head slowly. "Yes, there is a chance that the Cursed Child is alive. If it is alive, there is a chance that the Cursed Child will become a powerful Beast-kin, if it becomes powerful then there is a chance that it will be hostile and become another Beast… If we act, we only need one of the factions to declare war and the other will follow suit. The Fallen have been preparing for something for some time. I fear this may give them the excuse they are looking for to resume hostilities."

There was silence as the other Seraph's processed her words.

"We have agents in position already," Gabriel smiled weakly, "Let us take time to let them investigate and report anything."

"I said without a unanimous decision, I would not proceed," Michael looked his sister. "If you truly believe this, I shall honour my word and merely adopt a wait and see approach. Agreed?"

"Agreed," The other three nodded and everyone left the room, until only Gabriel and Michael were remaining.

"Sister," Michael looked at her, "Do you truly believe this is the best way?"

"Yes." Gabriel nodded, not a trace of doubt in her voice.

"Very well," Michael nodded. "For the time being, I entrust you with monitoring the Cursed Child situation. Should he be found, I trust in your judgement." He left without another word.

* * *

Naruto was a nervous wreck as he walked down the corridor, fussing with the buttons on his jacket. Despite his best attempts to clear up the misunderstanding with Tsubaki, he was yet to achieve any success. If anything, his reputation was suffering slightly for it, although that could have something to do with him hanging around outside the girl's toilets after seeing the vice president enter them. Unfortunately, he was dragged away by Maid-sempai just as Tsubaki left and was unable to speak to her.

Shaking his head, Naruto approached the building that Maid-sempai had ordered him to clean. It was a large, old looking building, with various western touches that Naruto was sure his father would have approved of if he ever saw them.

"Occult Club?" Naruto deadpanned as he read the small sign affixed next to the doors. "I bet they'd wet themselves if they realised a genuine magical being was stood outside their club room… Well club house I guess." Allowing a brief chuckle, he knocked on the door loudly, but got no response. Satisfied that no-one was coming to let him in, he opened the door and entered.

Clearly Kuoh academy didn't do things by halves. The clubroom had plenty of comfortable and expensive looking Victorian furniture, the sort of things that his Western-phile father would love to own. Groaning at the impossible nature of the cleaning job before him, he suddenly got an idea.

After glancing around to make sure no-one was looking, he tried out the exercise he had been shown by Jiraiya. While his seals severely limited his ability to use magic, it wasn't impossible, it just took a lot longer than normal. Unfortunately, even if he could slowly but surely cast a spell, it didn't matter if he lacked the skill to use the spell properly and after five attempts, Naruto looked down at the pale, groaning clones and ended their misery.

His progress had been going along nicely, but for some reason he just couldn't get the clones to appear correctly. He just figured he needed to pump more magic into them but no matter how much magic he used, the clones all ended up like that. Resigning himself to having to clean the house by himself, Naruto decided it was all Jiraiya's fault for being a useless teacher and made a mental note to complain to him later.

As he was cleaning, he got the uncomfortable feeling of being watched. Many of the pictures on the walls seemed to be always looking at him and he could have sworn that the heads on some of the suits of armour that were decorating the hallways turned to follow him, only to turn back when he looked at them.

"Spooky old building," Naruto grumbled as he knocked on a door, getting no response so walking in. It appeared that this was some sort of communal meeting area. Several comfortable couches were scattered throughout the room. The room was a little cluttered, so Naruto got to work tidying up. There was the sound of water running, but Naruto couldn't find the source and decided not to worry about it. As he tidied up, he noticed one of the seats had several cake crumbs on it.

Grumbling to himself about messy eaters, he looked around for some sort of vacuum cleaner but when his search was unsuccessful, started looking for a dustpan and brush instead. "Don't worry about the lessons." Naruto grumbled. "No just worry about being Maid-sempai's slave and I'll take all your money because I'm an old pervert." Letting out a frustrated sigh, Naruto leaned against a wooden panel that suddenly sunk into the wall, causing Naruto to let out a yelp and stagger backwards.

While Naruto tried to fix the sunken panel, a small section of the wall slid to one side and the sound of water got a lot louder. There was a soft singing voice that made Naruto stop and listen in awe. It was a cheerful tune that warmed his soul, making him forget both his grudge against Jiraiya and his concerns about being fired, if only for a few minutes. When the melody finally finished, so did the sound of water, replaced by the slapping noise of wet footsteps on a wooden floor.

"I could have sworn I'd shut that," A freshly showered Rias walked into the room and paused as she made eye contact with Naruto. Her skin was still wet and while she was wearing a towel, the sight of her stood there was almost too much for Naruto. "Can… I help you?" Rias' tone of voice was friendly but carried a definite tone of caution.

"Cleaning…" Naruto bit his tongue. "I was sent to clean up the building."

"This building should not be on the official cleaning schedule," The doubt in her voice was clearly matched by her gaze.

"I'm just doing what Maid-sempai told me to do." Naruto bowed his head and handed her the note from Maid-sempai, before backing off. "I apologise if there has been some sort of mistake."

Rias stood there, looking at him, before giving him a cheeky smile. "Well to be honest… I'm cutting class myself, so I'll keep this a secret if you will."

"That would be great!" Naruto beamed. "I get the feeling that another controversy might be enough to get me fired."

"Controversy?" Rias asked, genuine curiosity etched on her face.

"Well… Due to several coincidences and misunderstandings I get the feeling my employment status is in jeopardy." Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

"I see," Rias chuckled. "I'll admit when I first saw you, I was curious why someone of an age similar to my own was working rather than going through education?"

"Ah, well… That just sort of happened. One day I was in school then due to certain circumstances I had to leave my home and wound up here."

"Circumstances?" Rias pressed but only got an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, It's kind of personal."

"Ah, I understand," Her gentle smile lifted Naruto's spirit. He genuinely felt he could tell this girl everything and she would accept him. He could see why she was so popular amongst the students.

"So… Are you friends with someone in the club?" Naruto tried awkwardly to make conversation as he resumed tidying, very aware that Rias was still only in a towel yet seemed completely comfortable with their conversation.

"Well I'd like to think they are all my friends," Rias smiled. "I'm the head of the Occult Club."

"Seriously?" Naruto blinked.

"Is that a surprise?" The way she tilted her head should be a crime, Naruto thought to himself as he quickly looked away, less he fell in love with her.

"W-well. Given how popular you were I was sure you were some sort of idol or something." Naruto finally discovered a dustpan and headed over to the crumb covered couch. "Manager of the Occult club is… well… We had an occult club back at my old school and it was just a few guys trying to summon a succubus into their bedroom."

"Did you ever try?" Rias asked, her coy smile making Naruto's cheeks heat up.

"N-No! I never tried to summon a demon into my house!" Naruto stepped backwards from the laughing red head.

"Sorry," She smiled warmly at him. "I was just joking."

"W-well," Naruto grumbled, hoping his face didn't betray his embarrassment. (It did).

"Still it is a shame that they were so limited in their application of magic!" Rias exclaimed suddenly. "The occult is a wonderful thing! Here!" She grabbed Naruto's hand and dragged him over to a glass display case. "Do you know what this is?"

Naruto looked at the item on display. "Er… It sorts of looks a poor-quality mirror?"

"Poor quality mirror?" Rias let out a gasp, "This is the legendary Yata no Kagami… replica," She finished with a chuckle. "But it borrows some of the divinity of the original artefact. It is said that what is reflected in the mirror is the truth."

"Really? So… Basically like every other mirror then?" Naruto deadpanned.

"No!" Rias pouted slightly, playfully hitting Naruto on the shoulder. "Like if a devil looks into it, even if they are disguised they will see their true form."

"Really," Naruto shook his head. "Sure, it does."

"Honest!" Rias unlocked the cage and held it up to Naruto. "What do you see?"

"What do I…" Naruto's voice trailed off. What was looking back at him was _not_ his face. At least not properly. His reflection's hair was white and its eyes red and slitted. Six deep whisker scars ran along its face and it snarled, displaying sharp bestial fangs.

"Uzumaki-san?" Rias lowered the mirror. "Are you alright?"

"I… I don't know…" He looked at Rias, "I mean… My mom always told me I was handsome but… I'm average at best!"

"Idiot!" Rias let out a laugh as Naruto forced a cocky smile onto his face, trying to convince himself it was all a ruse by the bubbly Occult leader.

"Still I can tell you are passionate about this sort of thing," Naruto resumed cleaning while Rias returned the mirror to its case

"Yeah," Rias smiled. "It's all thanks to Sitri-san as well." She looked at Naruto, but he appeared to not react to the name, in fact all that happened was he turned to face her with an apologetic smile.

"Ah sorry, I don't think I know who that is," He laughed weakly.

"Ah sorry, I meant Shitori-san."

"The President?" Naruto paused as he recalled her piercing violet eyes.

"It's thanks to her that the Occult club got this whole building," Rias suddenly jumped up, causing a pleasant bouncing motion that Naruto felt guilty for noticing. "Say do you have an interest in the occult? I could always do with a new member!"

"Eh," Naruto made a point of looking around the room, "My uncle is kind of big on that stuff, but I don't really know much to be honest. Until recently I never really thought about it. I mean I knew a bit about religion from my dad but that's about it."

"Oh? Who is your father?"

"Just some old priest," Naruto laughed. "Or at least he was until he met my mother. He was forced to choose between his vows of celibacy and the woman he loved. My mom told me he didn't even wait for the head priest to stop speaking before taking off his collar and giving it back to the church."

"How romantic," Rias beamed as she watched Naruto at work. "So, you must be well versed on religious scriptures then?"

"Honestly, sermons were always too dry for me. I don't need some all-powerful god looking over me to make me behave in the right way." Naruto shrugged as he walked over to clean the windows, frowning as he saw a familiar figure walking to class, made even more noticeable by the wide ring of pupils keeping their distance from her.

Rias stood beside him, following his gaze. "Ah… Hyoudou-san."

"You know Issei-chan?" Naruto glanced at Rias, who wore a sad look on her face. "I'm surprised someone as popular as you knows who she is."

"She is always by herself when I see her… Well almost always." Rias turned to Naruto with a mischievous smile. "I've noticed she seems to talk to you a lot. What do you talk about?"

"Urgh…" Naruto looked away, "This and that. She's… she's interesting..."

"I see," Rias sighed. "When I saw her by herself I wanted to ask her if she wanted to join the Occult Club but… I figured I would give her a chance to make her own choice."

"I think she would be ecstatic if you asked her," Naruto chuckled. "Although… She might start saying some weird things. Still she is a good person. I think you should ask her."

"… You genuinely mean that." Rias let out a soft sigh. She gave up. During her questioning she never got the feeling he was lying and if he was allied with the fallen angels, she suspected he would have come up with some excuse to stop her getting close to Issei. "You are a good person, Uzumaki-san."

"Well I try," He laughed. "Still I can't stay here and talk all day, as much as I'd love to. I've got places to clean."

"Fight on!" She followed him to the door.

"I will, it was a pleasure Gremory-san." Naruto beamed at her.

"Just call me Rias," The beautiful woman smiled at him and as he looked at her, Naruto wondered if this is what it meant to be in love. A beautiful woman, her damp hair and wet skin carrying the scent of whatever shampoo she had used, looking at him with a pure and perfect smile while wearing only a towel.

It was a moment that Naruto would have put down as perfect, but reality had other ideas and before he could open his mouth to confess how he felt, the door he was stood behind opened. Well maybe opened is the wrong term. Launched open might be more accurate. But regardless of how you described it, the result was one Naruto Uzumaki being struck in the back and forced in the general direction of Rias. She moved to dodge instinctively, but then went to catch him but her awkward position resulted in his flailing arm grabbing her towel and tearing it off her as he fell to the floor. He tried to spin so he wasn't staring at the naked Rias but got tangled up in the towel, no doubt looking like a pervert wrapped up in the damp material.

Honestly it made him want to cry. How could this possibly get worse?

"Uzumaki-san," The cold voice of Tsubaki was unmistakable and Naruto found himself hoping he could suffocate in the towel to spare him the indignity of explaining this. Still it could be worse…

"Is the new janitor harassing you Gremory-san?" The dry voice of one Shitori Souna hit Naruto's ears and he gave a defeated sigh. So long Janitor's job. At least he had the image of a naked Rias burned deeply into his memory.

"This is my fault, not Uzumaki-san's!" Rias protested his innocence.

"Please get dressed Gremory-san," Souna rubbed her temples, watching as her rival/friend went back into the not-so-secret shower room to get dressed. While she was doing this, Tsubaki assisted Naruto out of the towel he had somehow gotten himself wrapped up in, shooting him a cold, disgusted gaze. It almost made him miss the cute blush she had just before she ran away last time they had spoken.

"Why are you here, Uzumaki-san?" Tsubaki asked as he stood up.

"I was sent to clean here by Maid-sempai." Naruto replied honestly.

"This building is off limits," Souna remarked. "Remember that next time please."

"Y-yes Ma'am!" The frosty tone of her words triggered a survival instinct in Naruto and he saluted her. She raised an eyebrow in response.

"I am glad that I ran into you, Uzumaki-san," Souna looked at the blonde, who suddenly felt a sinking feeling his stomach.

"Oh no…" Naruto paled.

"An incident was reported to me by the head nurse, Hyuuga-sensei," Souna walked over to the window, deliberately avoiding Naruto's gaze. As she stood there with a small beam of light from the open window striking her figure, he felt like he was gazing on a scene from one of the many expensive looking paintings that had been on the walls of the building. "You received a serious injury from the incident correct?" Out of the corner of his eyes, Naruto noticed Tsubaki visibly flinch.

"Oh, it wasn't that bad," Naruto laughed weakly.

"Oh?" Souna's smile was glacial as she turned to face Naruto. "Then please tell me what happened?"

"I… I was cleaning the student council hallway and I slipped down the stairs." Naruto slumped.

"So, you are incredibly clumsy? Not a trait I would like in a janitor if I'm completely honest." While her facial expressions betrayed nothing, Naruto got the impression the president was enjoying herself too much. "Then pray tell, why did my Vice President have tears in her eyes shortly after this incident? There were light bruises on her arms almost as if she had been attacked. Tell me Uzumaki-san, did you attack my Vice President?"

' _Oh gods,'_ Naruto froze up. "N-No! I mean she lost her balance and I tried to help her but…"

"Strange," Souna tapped her chin, "When did she lose her balance? Was this before you fell down the stairs?"

"Y-yes. She slipped and when I went to help her, I slipped."

"Then what happened?"

"We fell down the stairs and I ended up being taken to the infirmary."

"I feel you are missing out some key details from that story, maybe Shinra-san would like to fill in the gaps?"

"Wait!" Naruto interrupted, hoping he could tell his story before Tsubaki put the final nails into the coffin of his time at Kuoh. He felt a wave of nausea hit him but shrugged it off, "I… While I was falling I may have grabbed a hold of Shinra-san."

"I see…" Souna said no more, merely looking at Naruto with neither rage or disgust, in fact she was looking at him completely apathetically, which somehow made her appear even more angry to Naruto. "Anything else?"

"And when we got to the bottom of the stairs… Shinra-san fell over and between her falling over and the fall down the stairs, she found her clothes in a state of disrepair." Naruto lowered his head. "I… Saw something I probably shouldn't have. I accept I did something wrong and will face the punishment." He bowed sharply, standing with his upper body parallel to the floor and his eyes squeezed shut.

"Anything you wish to challenge Shinra-san?" Souna turned to her vice president, who nodded solemnly, a faint dusting of red on her face (Not that Naruto could see that).

"I wish to report that Uzumaki-san is deliberately lying to protect my dignity." Tsubaki stated. "It was my clumsiness that resulted in the fall and if not for his intervention, I could have received serious harm."

"…What?" Naruto looked up in shock.

"As I said," Tsubaki looked away from him, "I feel no blame lies with Uzumaki-san for the incident. In fact, if anyone should be blamed it should be me for fleeing when he required medical assistance. It should have been obvious to me when he was laid perfectly still, looking at me dazed."

"I see, then perhaps you should be punished?" Souna remarked.

"Wait!" Naruto shook his head, "Don't punish her! I wasn't hurt as bad as you seem to think!"

"Then why were you staring at me in a dazed fashion then?" Tsubaki asked.

"Are you serious?" Naruto looked at her, "Because there was a beautiful girl in front of me that was… revealing more than she probably would have liked."

Tsubaki blinked a few times as if what was said failed to register with her. Then a deep red seemed to rise from her chin until her face was practically glowing. "W-w-w-w-what?!" The usually calm and collected Tsubaki let out a surprised squawk before hiding her face behind a clipboard, mumbling to herself.

"Hmm… I can't say I approve of a member of staff flirting with a student," Souna remarked dryly. "But that seems to be everything resolved." Souna nodded. "You mean us no harm correct?"

"Of course not!" Naruto felt a bit dizzy for a moment before the same shooting pain he had felt from the infirmary flared up again, dispelling the sensation.

"Actually, there is one issue that I believe needs addressing." Tsubaki, now recovered from her earlier embarrassment, cleared her throat.

"Yes?" Naruto smiled at her, but the girl refused to meet his gaze.

"…You did just strip Gremory-san. That is a very serious matter." Tsubaki made a note on her clipboard, "One that we have no choice but to have you fired for."

"…Ahahaha…" Naruto slumped and laughed robotically. "It's all over…"

"… I was joking," Tsubaki pushed her glasses up and walked away with a smile.

"A joke?!" Naruto blinked as Souna walked up to him.

"I am glad to see you have mastered your job to the point where you can have long conversations." Souna's smile was glacial. "I am sure you'll have plenty of time to clean the Student council office before the end of the day. Your employment may depend on it."

"Would calling you cute change anything?" Naruto tried hopefully.

"Ah, a womaniser? Maybe I should have you fired regardless," Souna remarked dryly. "You are clearly a threat to women." With that she left, nodding at the now dressed Rias who had just re-entered the room. "Remember, my office shall be cleaned by the end of the day." She left behind a defeated Naruto and bemused Rias.

"She may act like that, but she is a good person, honestly," Rias patted Naruto on the shoulder.

"Good person?" Naruto deadpanned. "She's a devil!"

When Rias realised he didn't mean it literally, she couldn't help but laugh, much to the confused Naruto's chagrin.

Outside the room Sona looked at her Queen. While on the surface she appeared calm and collected, Sona knew her friend well enough to see the tell-tale signs that she had something on her mind.

"This Uzumaki-san is not a spy," Sona smiled as she pulled a small pearl from her pocket. Its surface swirled as if a small storm was raging inside it. "There is no magic that we couldn't detect that would interfere with a Pearl of Veritas. So, you know what that means."

"When did you activate the pearl?" Tsubaki asked.

"Oh, some point just before he talked about you falling down the stairs together," Sona looked.

"S-So… He meant it when he said I was beautiful?" There was a faint blush on her face.

"…Yes," Sona smiled wryly. "With those magic reserves… He could make a powerful piece. Maybe I should recruit him, should he be an ally?"

"Y-yes." Tsubaki nodded, "Er… I mean if that is what you want to do."

Sona nodded with a faint smile. "Uzumaki Naruto huh? I get the feeling he will be _very_ useful."

Back in the clubroom Naruto shivered.

"Why do I get the feeling my life just got a lot more complicated?" He mumbled to himself.

* * *

"Alright," Naruto sat cross legged as he looked at the large book in front of him, a scowl on his face. It had been four days since he had first been dropped off at Jiraiya's house. His hand still had a soft glow but did look a little less bright. Unfortunately, he had hit a wall when it came to his studies with the spell. No matter what he did, all he got were the sickly-looking clones. He was considering asking Jiraiya for help, but the smug look on the fallen Angel's face every time he mentioned Naruto's progress meant the blonde's pride wouldn't allow it.

Glancing at the small calendar that was next to his futon, Naruto realised he would have a day off tomorrow and that somehow, Issei seemed to have convinced him to meet up with her and one of her friends at the park where they had first met. He was kind of curious what a friend of 'Harem Freak' Issei would be like. Probably a Yaoi fanatic or an otaku or something.

He picked up his phone and called his mother. Before it had even finished the first ring she answered.

"Naruto! Do you want to come home? Minato, go and get in the car!"

"I'm not coming home just yet mom," Naruto looked at his glowing arm. "But I think I'm making some good progress though."

"Well, that's good to hear," Kushina's voice was sad. "Is that old pervert looking after you?"

"Yeah, he's keeping me fed and everything."

"And this school he's got you in, are you learning much?"

"It's fine mom. The school is really posh, and I am learning a lot." _'Technically true if not for the fact those two statements are unrelated.'_ Naruto felt a bit guilty for misleading his parents but Jiraiya was right in assuming that his mother would gladly walk the many miles between his new abode and his parents' house and drag Naruto back kicking and screaming if she knew that he wasn't going to school to learn and was in fact being hired out by Jiraiya. So long as there were people out to kill him, it was best to avoid going home.

"Well..." Before Kushina could say anything else, there was the sound of two excitable voices.

"Is it Naru-nii? Is he coming home?! Naru-nii!" Tsunade's excitable voice sounded through the phone, "Are you coming home? If you don't I'll hide all your socks and steal all your dirty mags!"

"I apologise for the idiot," A more refined voice responded. "Beloved Onii-sama. I understand that you must be parted from us for the moment but know my heart longs for our reunion and I remain forever faithful to you. Why I already replaced the faces of all the girls in your magazines with my own to make them more suitable for your tastes and shall ensure its delivery to you soon. Oh and another thing about this boorish individual. She received a confession from a boy in our school today."

"You cold shrew! I turned him down Naru-nii! After all I'm going to marry you!"

"Girls," Naruto let out a soft sigh. "I'm your brother. Aren't you a little old to still be saying such things? You are nearly 15 now!"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Tsunade sounded sulky. "I am going to marry you! I'll just beat up anyone who tries to stop us! Even that Issei tramp!"

"An uncivilised response as expected," Mito sighed, "While I plan to become Prime Minister and change the laws, it will take some time so wait for me, my sweet Onii-sama. This Issei may seem like a good decision now but I assure you I am more than worth the wait."

"…Mom can you help me out here?"

"If I could change their minds I would have by now," Kushina's voice was as exasperated as Naruto's. "But let's talk about these dirty mags? Is that Issei responsible?!"

With a weak chuckle, he tried to explain that there were no such mags (at least not in his old bedroom) and that Issei was a friend and nothing more before the conversation turned to mundane every day matters and after talking to his family for a while longer, he wished them good night and hung up after promising to ring them again tomorrow. While he appreciated the fact they cared, it was a bit oppressive at times. Maybe this would all turn out for the best. He chuckled as he imagined how his sisters would react to meeting Issei before putting his mobile on charge and heading downstairs, where Jiraiya was watching something on TV. Closer inspection revealed it to be a female gymnastics event.

"Oh, finally given up boy?" Jiraiya smirked. "Do you want to know the secret to that book?"

"I'm making good progress," Naruto replied defensively. "I'll have that skill mastered before you know it!" He paused before looking at Jiraiya, "You knew my birth parents, right? Could you tell me anything about them?"

"Your father was… something of an idiot savant I suppose. He was one of Heaven's brightest generals and few save a Seraph could defeat him in battle. Then you talked to him and couldn't help wondering if he took one too many blows to the head." There was a distant and fond smile on his face. "He was one of the generals who thought up a great strategy to help stall the Nephilim. He fought for ten years with barely a moments rest but never faltered. Then he had a complete brain fart and fell in love with the heartless monster that was your birth mother. I told him it was stupid and that she was only using him, but he didn't care. I don't really know much about your mother, I think she is still alive, but that would change should I ever learn of her location."

"You said there were three children, right?" Naruto tried to change the subject, "Does that mean I have blood-siblings?"

"Oh them, yeah." Jiraiya nodded. "Although they think you're dead if they even knew you ever existed. I know your Angel sister was entrusted to Gabriel, so she is probably healthy and happy. Your other sister though…" There was a dismissive shrug.

"One day I'll find them," Naruto nodded, "After I've proved I'm not a threat and then… I'd like to introduce them to my little sisters. Maybe having an older female role model will help them become more reasonable."

"Isn't your mother a reasonable role model?"

"I'm 90% sure her over-the-top mothering is the reason they ended up perfectly happy to make exaggerated displays of affection towards me in the first place." Naruto chuckled.

Jiraiya merely snorted in amusement. "I can see that." He nodded, "Well how about a bit of a lesson since you are clearly making such good progress that you have time to waste chatting to me."

"About what?" Naruto sat down in a comfortable chair, accepting the cup of tea that Jiraiya passed him.

"The state of magic in the world." Jiraiya nodded sagely. "For example, you recently discovered Angels, Fallen Angels and Devils were magic-using species, but did you know that humans can use it as well although their sources vary."

"So even my little sisters could potentially cast spells as well?"

"Well, you need an aptitude in most cases. The two most common styles are the Religious teachings headed by Rome. These mages tend to be called Exorcists and usually rely on artefacts or an Angel's blessings to use magic. The stronger the faith of the individual the more powerful the magic. Then there are cultists or warlocks who are the same except they use magic gifted through a pact with a devil. In this case it is the individuals desire that fuels their magic, be that sexual desire or a just a desire to raise through the ranks or to understand more about the world. Often a single devil will grant powers to a single servant who then forms a cult to gather more individuals the devil might be able to use."

"So basically, a magic using species has to grant the ability to a human?" Naruto stifled a yawn.

"There is the Mages Association, based in London who instead rely on understanding magic and using tools to cast spells without Angelic or Demonic assistance but the effort to reward ratio is considerably less for these mages. First, they need an innate skill at magic and a great intellect to understand how to interact with magic and influence it." Jiraiya yawned. "While intelligence is harder to influence, the innate ability to control magic can be passed on through genetics so there are a lot of old families who dominate the Mages Association. You probably won't have much to do with them this far from Europe though."

"I see," Naruto frowned. "So there was literally no reason for you to tell me about them?"

"Not really, I was just bored and like sounding intelligent." Jiraiya admitted unashamedly. He chuckled as Naruto stormed off to his room. "Enjoy your studying! Remember every useless fact I teach you forces some more useful knowledge out of your head! I'll be sure to let you know what little I know about reincarnation next time!"

"Bite me old man!" Naruto retorted angrily as he made his way back to his room. He sometimes wondered if Jiraiya was trying to teach him anything or just annoying him to pass the time. He could never understand the Fallen Angel's actions.

* * *

"So… who's the lucky girl?" Jiraiya grinned as he wrapped a fresh roll of bandages around Naruto's left arm. The two were stood in his living room, the young blonde standing impatiently as Jiraiya slowly applied seals to the bandages as he unravelled them.

"What makes you think a girl is involved?" Naruto replied defensively. "I just have a friend who wanted to meet up alright?"

"Okay, okay," Jiraiya smirked, "You forget I read your test messages. Remember no matter what, you can't remove these bandages even if you think your arm is impressive enough to get a girl to drop her panties. A true gentleman could trick her into sex without such gimmicks! Without the barriers and spells this house has, removing that seal would be like firing a million flares and wearing a massive sign saying, 'Potential Nephilim here'."

"A 'true gentlemen' would never trick a girl," Naruto retorted as he checked his reflection in the mirror. He was wearing a black tracksuit with a single orange striped around his waist.

"They'd probably put more effort into their appearance than you as well," Jiraiya sighed dramatically.

"I refuse to take fashion advice from someone who dresses like a Kabuki actor."

"It's called blending in! I wanted to look Japanese to throw off any pursuers."

"Well, I'll give you credit where its due old pervert," Naruto headed to the door, "If I was looking for someone in hiding, I probably wouldn't think the guy who sticks out like a sore thumb was the guy I was looking for."

"See!" Jiraiya smirked. "The almighty Jiraiya-sama is a genius!"

"…Never mind," Naruto shook his head as he left the house, heading to the park at a brisk pace. Part of him was wondering whether he should make an excuse not to show up, but he had promised her, and Naruto never went back on his word.

He was so deep in thought that he nearly ran into a stern looking older man. He was wearing a large trench coat and a suit underneath it. He scowled at Naruto, adjusting her fedora before walking away without a further word.

"Man, he just reeked of suspicious," Naruto frowned before shaking his head. "It's probably nothing."

He continued towards the park without giving the stranger a second thought, until he got to the entrance, where Issei was stood talking to some girl Naruto had not seen before. When she saw him, Issei started bouncing up and down, waving her arms wildly resulting in a pleasant bouncing motion from her modest chest. Clearly her friend caught his less than pure gaze as there was a look of horror and shock before she quickly schooled her features into a more neutral expression. It was a shame as Naruto had to admit she was quite a cute girl. She had long, brown hair and a beautiful smile and was wearing a cute shirt and dress.

"Naruto-kun! You made it," Issei beamed. "Oh, this is Yuuma-chan, she's my friend."

"A pleasure," Yuuma smiled and bowed her head softly. "I was eager to meet the person Issei-chan spoke so fondly of."

"Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto bowed his head in return, "Nice to meet you too. I was interested to meet another one of Issei's friends."

"Right, now that we are all acquainted!" Issei grabbed Naruto with one hand and Yuuma with the other, dragging them behind her. "There is a festival in town today with all sorts of stalls! Let's have fun together!"

"S-sure," Naruto laughed weakly before glancing at Yuuma who quickly looked away. _'Oh… That was a hostile look. Did… Did she think this would be a date with Issei or something? I mean I know in books that girls at an all girl's school have a higher tendency to be involved in lesbian romances but didn't figure it was actually true. Maybe I should make an excuse to leave these two alone.'_

The trio walked up to the first set of stalls, Issei still leading the charge.

"Oh look," Issei beamed. "It's a gun shooting game."

"Indeed," Yuuma nodded softly. "Oh, that giant teddy looks so cute!"

"I'll bet Naruto-kun can win it for you!" Issei gave him a big thumbs up and was so confident that Naruto himself believed her, until he remembered he'd never even seen a firearm, let alone used one.

"Er… What?" Naruto blinked as Issei leaned towards him and dramatically whispered in his ear.

"Woo her with your skills! Show her the powers of a Harem Protagonist!" She hissed before slapping him on the back. "Yeah, Naruto is really great with guns!"

"Is that so?" There was a strange look on Yuuma's face that quickly cleared.

"You want to play a game?" The old man behind the stall smiled as he pointed to the cans stacked into pyramids behind him. "500 Yen for 5 shots. The more cans you knock down the better the prize I'm sure a big, strapping boy like you will have no problem winning a prize for these lovely ladies."

"I'm not…"

"Naruto-kun is going to claim the top prize!" Issei declared as she interrupted Naruto and slammed some money on the counter which quickly vanished into the stall owner's pockets.

"W-well I wouldn't say that I'm anything special," He picked up the air rifle experimentally, trying to ignore Issei telling Yuuma completely fabricated stories on how awesome he was and took aim, the storekeeper standing to one side with a smug look on his face. Squeezing the trigger, Naruto was surprised when he managed to hit the pyramid of cans, but considerably less surprised that he failed to knock any of them over. Four more shots, of which only two hit a can, and still he had failed to knock even a single can down.

"I guess I'm having an off day," Naruto rubbed the back of his head in embarrassed.

"The game has to be fixed," Issei declared angrily, "Those cans barely moved!"

"Have you got a problem with how I run my game?" The Stall owner leaned forwards, resting his hands on a large wooden club.

"Of course not," Naruto tried to calm the furious Issei.

"Let me have a try," Yuuma smiled as she picked up a rifle and put down some money.

"Feel free to try as many times as you want," The stall owner laughed.

While he was struggling to restrain Issei, Naruto was watching Yuuma out of the corner of his eyes and saw her apparently kiss the toy gun for good luck before pulling the trigger. As soon as the rubber pellet struck the centre of the pyramid of cans, they all tumbled to the floor leaving a stunned Naruto, Issei and Stall owner.

"W-well you get a grand prize…" The stall owner moved to take a large teddy bear from the pile of prizes but Yuuma stopped him with an innocent smile.

"I believe I paid for five shots?" She smiled.

Four minutes later, Naruto and Issei were carrying two giant teddy bears each whilst Yuuma walked along with only one, leaving behind an openly weeping stall owner.

"That was amazing," Issei beamed. "How'd you get so good with guns?"

"Oh, it's nothing," Yuuma smiled politely, "My dad taught me a few things and some lessons never really fade." She kept glancing at Naruto, as if expecting him to say something but this was misunderstood by the other two.

Naruto assumed she was hinting at him that he should leave so she could spend some alone time with Issei (Which was not 100% wrong) and Issei thought she was looking at him because she could sense his Harem Protagonist Magnetism ™ and was slowly but surely succumbing to his influence.

"What should we go to next?" Issei grinned.

"If you don't mind, I could do with visiting the lady's room." Yuuma looked embarrassed.

"Of course!" Issei gestured in the direction of the bathrooms, watching Yuuma slip out of sight before turning to Naruto. "Okay… So, my plan to have you impress her didn't go very well but I think she's warming up to you."

"I honestly think she'd be happier If I left… Wait a second, why do you want me to impress her?" Naruto asked.

"So, you can use your harem protagonist skills to win her heart and then she'll join your harem," The tone of Issei's voice made it clear she thought this was obvious.

"But isn't she your friend?!" Naruto protested, long since used to the fact that Issei could not be dissuaded of his Harem Protagonist status.

"Exactly! It is important that the first members of the harem get along well as that will encourage others to accept the harem lifestyle! Yuuma-chan is my best friend so having her a sort of sister would be awesome!"

"You must have known her for a long time huh?" Naruto chuckled softly.

"I befriended her two days before I met you." Issei replied proudly.

"I'm starting to wonder if falling from that tree has left some lasting damage," Naruto's shoulders dropped. "Don't you ever stop and think things over? Within a minute of meeting me you thought I was trying to start your route or something."

"I just go with my gut! From the moment you touched me after seeing my most secret area, I could tell you were a good person! If I stopped and waited for you to validate my belief we may never have become friends. Every second we hesitate is a potential flag we might miss. You can't afford to let a single opportunity slip away!"

"You say that as if you are in danger of dying soon." Naruto sighed.

"Maybe I am," Issei looked up at the blue sky. "Some people just die for no reason. Old people, people like us… babies barely a minute old…"

"Issei-chan?"

"Ah sorry, this is supposed to be a potential harem member recruitment, I didn't mean to bring down the mood," Issei returned to her bubbly self instantly. "Hmm… She's taken a while in the bathroom, isn't she? Maybe she wants someone to go in and trigger some sort of flag."

"Or maybe she's… you know," Naruto coughed awkwardly. "Passing something solid?"

"Are you some sort of pervert who gets off talking about girls pooping?" Issei asked in shock.

"What?! You're the one who wants me to go into the girl's toilet to trigger some sort of event!"

"I never specified she wanted you to go in. That was all you." Issei grinned. "Maybe we should go in together~"

"If you want to go in feel free," Naruto let out an exhausted sigh, "I mean you are a girl so going in the girl's toilets is okay for you."

"Oh, I get it. You think you can trigger another harem event by standing here without another girl with you. I'll leave you to it," She left with what Naruto assumed was supposed to be a sly wink.

"That is totally not what I meant." Naruto protested as he watched her go. _'I really don't get this girl.'_

Issei grinned as she made her way to the toilet, her giant teddy bears under each arm. She was having fun and even if the first plan hadn't gone as she had wanted, they had a whole day to try and get Yuuma and Naruto closer. Issei had read pretty much every romantic harem story ever written (At least the officially published ones) and had a whole host of clichés to bust out in order to get Yuuma's heart going 'doki doki'.

Glancing over her shoulder, Issei chuckled as she saw some small kids asking Naruto for the giant teddies which he happily gave away. From the first time she'd seen him, she had felt a comforting presence, like he was some sort of natural big brother entity, the kind of person she had always wanted to know. If he was her big brother than that meant she could be an imouto character, her favourite member of any harem. She briefly considered asking if she could call him Onii-chan but figured that would be pushing it. Besides like Naruto said, they'd have plenty of time to get comfortable enough in each other's presence to give each other pet names. As strange as it may have sounded. This past week since meeting Naruto had be so much fun. She couldn't wait to see what the future held.

"Excuse me miss," She was brought back to reality by a girl wearing a short red dress with cute black wings on the back. She had brown hair and Issei briefly considered trying to get her to talk to Naruto before dismissing the idea and accepting the flyer and stuffing it in her pockets, making a mental note to read it later before resuming her journey to the girl's bathroom.

As she walked into the toilets she could barely make out a soft voice apparently talking to someone.

"I don't know. Honestly, he appears sealed but the fact I can sense his energy over the seal worries me. Just promise when I trigger the isolation spell you'll show up just in case. Yes, yes, I know. Thanks, Dohnaseek. Yes, hopefully it will be a battle worth your time."

The stall the voice was coming from opened and Yuuma stepped out, a surprised look on her face. "I-Issei-chan?"

"Sorry," Issei beamed. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop but it's okay. I understand."

"… Pardon?"

"But you don't have to worry! Judging from the bandages on his arm, Naruto-kun is also a fan of Chuunibyou play so you don't have to be worried about your spells and seals." Issei winked, "But I'll keep your secret until you are ready to tell him yourself."

"…Thanks," Yuuma smiled widely. "I really appreciate it."

"Think nothing of it!" Issei laughed as the two girls left the toilets, meeting up with Naruto who was stood with several trays of okonomiyaki.

"They were on offer, so I figured why not," Naruto laughed weakly as he offered a tray to each of the girls, who accepted them with a soft smile.

* * *

It was several hours later, and the sun was starting its descent when the trio finally stopped for a rest. They approached a large fountain and made themselves comfortable on a bench. Naruto was sat on the left and Yuuma on the right with an ecstatic Issei between them, happily eating some skewered dango. There was no one else in sight which confused Naruto slightly, given as he expected this to be a hot date spot. He realised this mentally meant he thought he was on a date with Issei and Yuuma and quickly tried to shake the thought from his head.

"This was fun!" Issei suddenly declared as the three youths watched the fountain. "We should totally do this again."

"I actually had a lot of fun," Naruto smiled. Sure, it had been tiring with Issei coming up with plan after plan to force Naruto and Yuuma to end up in cliched situations, but he had to admit, it was anything but boring.

"I'm glad to hear that," Yuuma smiled as she got off the bench and walked over to a fountain, hopping softly onto the ledge before spinning around and facing Issei and Naruto with a smile. "I wasn't expecting to have this much fun either. You know Naruto-san, I had to admit I was worried about you. I thought you would ruin all my plans, but I am fairly certain I was wrong."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about me getting in your way," Naruto laughed.

"I'm glad to hear that." There was tone to her voice that suddenly sent shivers down Naruto's spine. "You see… There are some things in this world that have to be- taken care of."

"Yuuma-chan?" Issei looked around nervously as the air started to crackle with energy and 'Yuuma' was swallowed up by a vortex of energy that faded away to reveal an older looking Yuuma, wearing an outfit that was more like a black leather bikini and with black wings sprouting from her back.

"You're some sort of Angel?" Naruto paled. "Those black wings… Are you a Fallen?"

"Full marks. Judging from your arm I was wondering if you were a rival exorcist sent to interfere in my work, but it seems you are just a boy playing with forces they don't understand. I was debating whether to let you live or not but honestly… Seeing that stupid grin on your face made me want to see your scared face." Yuuma's smile turned sinister. "Honestly, that pathetic little girl was so happy to have a friend at last. How sad that because of her… her one true friend is going to die~"

"W-what do you mean?!" Issei leapt off the bench.

"I mean I'm going to kill Naruto-kun… and make you watch as the last of his life bleeds away, so you can see the look in his eyes as he blames you for his death. Then I will destroy you."

"But why?" Issei yelled. "I… I thought we were friends? Why do you want to kill me and hurt me?"

"Dear Issei…" The fallen angel's voice dripped with condescension, "Did you really think that anyone would willingly be your friend. Even this boy probably only hangs around with you because he thought you'd be easy to seduce. So sad and lonely."

"That's… That's not true." Issei clenched her fists. "Naruto-kun isn't like that! You're not like this!"

"How would you know? How long have you known him for?" Yuuma tutted. "For all you know he could be the same as me."

Naruto glanced at his bandaged arm before looking between Issei and Yuuma, wondering if he should remove the bindings and weighing up the pros and cons.

Pro: Jiraiya would sense him and know something was up.  
Con: Anyone who wanted him dead (including the fallen angel in front of him) would know where and what he was and Yuuma would probably consider him a threat rather than a nuisance and kill him instantly.

Pro: He could use the spell he had almost mastered.  
Con: He hadn't mastered the spell and a lethargic clone of himself was even less use than he was sealed.

Pausing a moment, he started to consider things from the opposite point of view. What were the benefits of leaving the bandages on?

Pro: Yuuma would think he was harmless and toy with him, giving him a slow and pathetic death before killing Issei… Okay that wasn't really a Pro. If he removed the bandages then he would probably die, but it might attract enough attention that Issei may be saved. If he was going to die anyway, he could at least try and be a distraction for her.

"Hey Yuuma," Naruto yelled with a soft smirk.

"What do you want human boy?" Yuuma tilted her head. "Want to beg for your life… I know! If you kill her, I'll let you live as my servant. Wouldn't that be fun?"

"About as fun as dying from the plague," Naruto retorted as he began unravelling the bandages with a smirk before dropping them to the floor, revealing his glowing arm.

"Whoa…" Issei blinked in awe.

"I see…" Yuuma frowned softly. "You have some sort of sacred gear too? That's fine. I just have to destroy both of you now."

"So, you don't know what this power is?" Naruto was slightly off put by her lack of a reaction. They way Jiraiya had talked made it sound like every magical species was terrified of a Nephilim but Yuuma seemed barely interested. He looked around, as if expecting angels to crash all around him but there was a notable lack of activity.

"Oh, was that supposed to be signal to summon your allies?" Yuuma laughed. "I set up an isolation spell a long time ago and triggered it before revealing myself to you. Until I end it no-one can enter or leave this small bubble of reality."

"…What?" Naruto's bravado vanished.

"You are alone here." Yuuma seemed to take great delight in the rapid paling of Naruto's face. "Now then… Quick or slow… How should I kill you?"

"You leave me no choice," Naruto grit his teeth and gathered his energy and slapped his palms together, as if in prayer. "Take this!" There was a soft poof of smoke that filled the area and a sickly Naruto staggered out of it and fell to its knees before collapsing in a heap, groaning pathetically.

"What was that supposed to do?" Yuuma asked in a deadpan before looking at where Naruto and Issei had been stood. "Oh… A distraction. I wonder if he realises I can tell exactly where he is thanks to that arm. Oh well," She chuckled darkly, "Let the hunt begin~"

* * *

Issei cursed her luck as she ran through the trees and bushes that surrounded the fountain. There wasn't much cover, but she hoped that it was enough. She had to find someone to come and help them.

When the cloud of smoke had covered them, Naruto had quickly run over to her and told her to flee, saying he would serve as a distraction. She told him that if it was her they were after he should be the one that fled but he told her that apparently his arm was like a beacon to them, so he would never be able to escape from them, but she could, and she could get help.

She should have known it was too good to be true. Her entire life she had always gotten her hopes up only to have them torn apart shortly after. Every friend she had made ended up drifting apart after a few days and as she couldn't keep friends she sought solace in books and discovered the magic of harems. In a harem there were so many people that interacted with each other, even though their interests were different they shared one common desire. To be with the protagonist. The bonds of sisterhood formed in such stories inspired her and when the girls worked together (Usually to foil another member of the harem) she found herself in awe then she started playing Visual novels and discovered harem routes.

They were a way for all the girls to be happy and come together like an extended family. A way for someone like her to make friends and finally allow her to have a fun life full of romantic hijinks with her harem sisters and love interest. Of course, when the other girls found out that she played such games she was ostracised even more, which only caused her to seek more solace in the very media that had caused her isolation from her peers.

She shook such thoughts from her head. After all she had met Naruto and he was a good person. He could even possibly be the harem hero she had been looking for. He wasn't too bad to look at and for some reason, Issei felt safe around him. Even after seeing Yuuma turn into an angel and say she was going to kill them, she had no doubt that Naruto would somehow prevail. It was his Harem Protagonist Aura ™. When he smiled as said everything was going to be alright, you just couldn't help but believe him.

She suddenly ran into a tall man wearing a trench coat and a fedora, who turned and looked at her with a cold stern face.

"Mr! My friend is being attacked!" She turned to point into the forest. "He needs help. Please Mr!"

She never saw the spear of energy aimed at her back.

* * *

"Peek-a-boo!" Yuuma cooed as she launched a crackling spear of energy at Naruto, narrowly missing him and causing the tree next to him to explode in a shower of bark before falling, narrowly missing the fleeing blonde. "You can't hide from me."

"So, tell me… Why do you want to kill Issei and just what the hell is a Sacred Gear?"

"You don't know?" Yuuma scoffed, "You must be low in what ever magic order you belong to. A sacred gear is a 'blessing' from God. Your friend had the misfortune to be one of those souls born with one inside them. Such a thing is a considerable threat to my kind."

"So, you're scared of her?" Naruto hoped provoking the fallen angel would have her make a mistake, but she was largely unbothered by his remark.

"If you saw a tiger in its cage, would you consider it cowardice to not climb in the cage?" Yuuma fluttered through the air and tossed another spear of energy at Naruto, who yelped and dived out of the way. "I wonder if he's finished by now?"

"…What do you mean?" Naruto scrambled to his feet as he felt his blood freeze.

"My colleague… You see I wasn't sure what sort of a threat you might be, so I asked a friend to make sure Issei-chan was looked after."

"W-what?" Naruto froze, providing the fallen angel with an opportunity she would not pass up, charging him in the blink of an eye and thrusting her spear at his chest, which he instinctively tried to block by crossing his arms. By more luck than skill the spear struck his glowing left arm, before suddenly being forced back and staggering the surprised fallen angel. Viewing this as his only chance to get a good hit in, Naruto lunged with his glowing arm and punched her square in the face.

Physically speaking, a human _could_ hurt an Angel if they tried hard enough but it would take some preparation on the human's part. Naruto had not expected to have to fight for his life and punch an Angel in her beautiful face, but then again never in her worst fears did Yuuma expect to fight someone with 16 years' worth of suppressed divine energy compressed into a single fist.

The resultant punch carried far more force than Yuuma was expecting and sent her soaring backwards through the park.

Pausing to admire his handiwork, Naruto quickly remembered what Yuuma had said and turned to run in search of Issei. He was sure she was bluffing, after all the seals on his arm should have meant she couldn't have sensed his power but still he couldn't suppress his concern as he ran through the park, he made his way back to the fountain and froze in horror.

Issei was lying in a pool of her own blood, the man Naruto had seen earlier stood over her scornfully.

"You…" Naruto felt a cold sensation sweeping over his body. "Why?!"

"She wasn't worth the effort, maybe you will be more interesting," The man scowled at Naruto before thrusting the crackling shaft of energy at him, Naruto parrying it with his arm earning a grunt of respect from the larger man. "That arm of yours, is it a Sacred Gear? No… I don't think it is. Curious." The man grinned ferally, "Still it holds some power. More than can be said for her."

"You bastard!" Naruto leapt at the man, rage overwriting his self-preservation as he swung at the smug fallen angel, who dodged his strike with a sneer, leaving black feathers in the air that detonated with enough force that Naruto was sent skidding backwards, his tracksuit sleeves ripped apart as he shielded his face.

"Or perhaps you are just a wild beast," The man mocked Naruto then lunged at him, intending to spear the blonde through his heart. Naruto grabbed the spear with his glowing arm and was forced backwards, the man casually walking forwards as Naruto put his entire strength into stopping the spear getting near his chest. Unfortunately, while he was focused on the man, he left his back wide open and the next thing he felt was two soft breasts resting against him before a pain many times worse than anything he had ever felt before wracked his entire body.

"Oh, did that hurt," Yuuma leaned on his shoulder, twisting the spear she had thrust into his stomach and smiling serenely as he coughed up blood. "I really didn't appreciate that punch. Now any last words?"

"You… You've got something on your cheek." Naruto closed his eyes.

"What?"

"My fist," Naruto struggled to collect the energy, cursing as the pain of his wound and the loss of a considerable amount of blood. In response to his reduced energy output, a perfectly formed Naruto clone appeared and punched Yuuma in the face, although without his divine energy coated arm it was little more than a slap to her face.

"Really." With a sigh she threw Naruto to the ground and destroyed the clone.

"We are done here." The male turned and walked away, "Have you secured the main target?"

"She should be here shortly. It has taken a lot of effort to get her," Yuuma grabbed Naruto by his collar dragging him along with a sick smile.

"…Are you bringing him with us?" The man scowled.

"I'm curious about just who he is." She chuckled darkly. "And I intend to make him tell me if he survives long enough for her to heal his wounds."

"…So long as it doesn't interfere with the plan." The man remarked darkly as the three suddenly vanished.

* * *

"What happened?!" Issei suddenly shot up and looked around wildly. She was in an unfamiliar room. "Did… Did I die?"

"You nearly did," A kind voice informed her and the owner of that voice, one Rias Gremory, stepped into her view. There was a look of concern on her face. "How do you feel?"

"G-g-g-g-Gremory-sempai?!"

"It's okay, you can call me Rias. You are in the Occult Room's clubroom."

"Oh, I couldn't possibly… I mean…" She suddenly froze, "Naruto! Where is Naruto?"

"Naruto?" Rias looked confused.

"Uzumaki Naruto! The new janitor!" Issei bit her lip nervously.

"Was he the one who attacked you?" Rias' eyes narrowed.

"What? No!" Issei shook her head. "It was a strange old guy in a suit and… Yuuma-chan… She said she was a Fallen Angel…"

"Yuuma?" Rias looked at someone behind Issei.

"That name doesn't ring any bells," The voice of Akeno responded to Rias' unasked question. "It is probably a fake name anyway."

"She… She was on the phone to someone called Dohnaseek… I thought it was some sort of LARP-ing thing but… she was planning to kill me… and Naruto he was just caught up in it…" She lowered her head, fighting back tears.

"That name was on the list of potential problems we received," Akeno stepped into view, "But when we arrived there was only you there."

"Himejima-sempai?" Issei squeaked. "I… The two idols? What… That's not important!" She tried to stand up but was forced back down by Akeno.

"You need to recover and there are things we need to tell you," Rias started to explain.

"But what about Naruto?" Issei asked.

"It is possible he was working with the Fallen angels…" Akeno started.

"No! That's… He wouldn't…" Issei looked at the floor. "He tried to buy me time to escape."

"I will put out some feelers to see if we can find him," Rias assured Issei, seeming to calm her down. "Now just relax for a few moments. I need to talk to someone but then I'll be back, and I will explain everything."

"R-right…" Issei nodded as the two beauties stepped out of the room, where the school president was waiting, anxiously tapping her foot with a distant expression that suddenly sharpened as Rias and Akeno approached her.

"Well," Sona Sitri crossed her arms. "Who were the culprits?" This attack had happened to close to her school and it had been a blow to her pride. She intended to have those responsible pay their debt in blood. Her peerage was already out looking for any clues but had found little save the blood stains and destroyed trees.

"Apparently she was attacked by Fallen Angels." Rias shook her head softly.

"I see," Sona frowned. "I've had my Peerage go over every inch of that park. I don't know how they managed to set up such a complicated barrier that prevented their detection, but I fear this was no 'one off' attack."

"Apparently the new janitor was there as well," Akeno added.

"Uzumaki-san?" Sona frowned. "You don't think he was helping the fallen angels?"

"Issei-chan is adamant that is not the case."

"I'll look into it. If he truly is with them, Issei's death is my fault for not taking action from the beginning." Sona nodded at Rias. "My Peerage shall look into this, focus on preparing Issei-chan for the Ratings Game."

"Thanks Sona." Rias gave her friend/rival a warm smile.

"Thank me by not losing," Sona replied calmly before walking away without a further word.

"I suppose it's time to teach her about her new race," Akeno smiled as they walked into the room only to find an ecstatic Issei with a content Koneko in her lap. "She seems happy enough."

* * *

"Urgh…" Naruto blinked stupidly as he woke up. He felt… surprisingly good considering he had been run through with a spear of pure energy. Despite himself, he couldn't help but recall the feeling of Yuuma's breasts against his back, before quickly dispelling the image and taking in his surroundings. He appeared to be in some sort of basement, laying on a cold church bench. Looking around he saw many defaced statues and altars and concluded wherever he was, it was owned by someone who didn't like God. He raised his left arm to wipe his brow and noticed that fresh bandages had been applied although the seals looked different this time. He checked himself for damage and found that despite his outfit bearing a bloody hole where he had been stabbed and the sleeves being burnt away where he had blocked the enemy attacks, he was perfectly healthy, bar an occasional shooting pain.

He let out a heartfelt groan as he struggled to his feet and looked around, seeing a young-looking nun kneeling before a small statue of some female saint or something, one of the few to avoid the wanton destruction that had targeted the other holy symbols. She turned as she heard him move, quickly running over to him with a look of concern. She was a young blonde girl, her face radiating innocence, purity and a concern that instantly put her in the same 'Must Protect' category of people as by his little sisters.

"Mr Half-Angel, you need to rest." She helped him sit back down. "My Twilight Healing has limited effectiveness on you for some reason."

"Twilight Healing?" Naruto blinked.

"My Sacred Gear," The nun clasped her hands together and looked to the roof of the attic, "The Gift from Him upon high. Are… Are you okay?"

"Fine, thanks," Naruto forced a smile, ignoring the stabbing pains that periodically shot through his body. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto, I'm… wait did you call me a half-angel?"

"I am Asia Argento," She bowed her head. "Ah, I mean Argento Asia… My given name Is Asia. You… you are not half-angel?"

"I'm not sure," Naruto laughed weakly, "What do you see when you look at me?"

"It is hard to put into words," Asia smiled weakly, "But I don't think Uzumaki-san is a bad person. You feel like the angels who graciously looked after me after my grave sin."

"Grave sin?" Naruto blinked.

"I… I used my powers to heal a devil." There was a sad look in her eyes, "As such I was branded a heretic and cast out of my church. But that didn't weaken my faith!" She suddenly perked up, "It is often said that in times of hardship, faith truly shines. I still pray frequently for guidance from the Lord."

"Oh," Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Is it really such a bad thing to heal a devil? Are they all evil? Because if I'm honest I've yet to meet an angel I'd call good and if all magical species are evil then I might just cry."

"Please don't be sad!" Asia smiled at him. "I believe all are capable of good, be they angel, devil or human." She smiled at Naruto in a way that made him want to hug her and tell her he would look after her, but he managed to resist the urge, if only for the trouble he would have explaining to Mito and Tsunade that he had adopted another little sister.

"Oh… you've finally woken up eh?" The boisterous voice of Jiraiya caused Naruto let out a sigh of relief, until he heard the familiar voice of Yuuma.

"Like I promised," Yuuma sighed. "Good as new."

"Jiraiya! She tried to kill me, and her friend killed Issei!" Naruto pointed furiously at Yuuma, who merely scoffed.

"I am aware of that," Jiraiya gestured. "You nearly messed up an official Fallen Angels mission. Raynare here was ordered to keep an eye on this Issei chick. You are lucky she didn't kill you outright."

"W-what do you mean?" Naruto's blood went cold but before he could say anything else, Jiraiya grabbed him by the collar and dragged him upstairs into what looked like a ruined church. As he was dragged out he noticed some sort of crazy preacher and the trench coat wearing assailant who killed Issei, who waved at him with a look of condescension.

The blood was pounding in Naruto's ears as Jiraiya continued to pull him outside. The two travelled in silence until Naruto couldn't take it and broke out of the old pervert's grip.

"What the hell?!" Naruto glared at the fallen angel. "Why did you just leave them alone?"

"As I said kid, Raynare had all the paperwork that showed she is here on official business. You were messing up an official Fallen Angel mission, which isn't going to go down to well with Azazel, one of the people you need to win over to not spend the rest of your life looking over your shoulder. Luckily for you, you got Raynare's interest and she decided she wanted to torture you rather than kill you."

"Didn't seem that way when she skewered me," Naruto gestured to his bloody outfit.

"A wound like that would have never killed you," Jiraiya shrugged. "Remember, despite your appearance you aren't human."

"Why did they let you take me?"

"I am a pretty powerful Fallen Angel," Jiraiya shrugged. "Even Dohnaseek knows better than to try his luck against me."

"Then why didn't you fight them and avenge Issei?!"

"Because I don't know Issei and honestly I don't care. Besides, they are practically tutorial level bosses that you fight after finding some good allies and getting a basic grasp of your powers." Jiraiya chuckled to himself as the hint went straight over Naruto's head, "Did you meet that cute nun?"

"Oh Asia-chan?" Naruto nodded. "Yeah. She seems like a good person."

"Oh, she is," Jiraiya nodded. "Shame though."

"What is?"

"Oh, I was talking to Raynare and apparently they are going to kill her in a week when the final supplies they need to complete their ritual arrive." Jiraiya mentioned matter-of-factly.

"Then you have to go and save her!" Naruto grabbed Jiraiya by the labels of his jacket.

"We can't get involved if you want to win over Azazel," Jiraiya reminded. "Besides that, sounds like too much effort."

"Then I'll do it then," Naruto started back towards the church before being grabbed by Jiraiya.

"Listen kid, people die all the time. She has a week to make peace with that fact. I mean imagine all the things you could do in a week. I mean you could write a short story, compile a photo album, have some pretty exciting sexual encounters, Heck you might even be able to learn some powerful magic or maybe make some powerful allies to help you with your goal." Jiraiya looked out of the corner of his eyes and saw, much to his delight, his words had the desired effect.

"Yeah," Naruto looked at the church and clenched his fist. "A lot can happen in a week…" He turned to leave, the fire in his soul ignited. "This isn't over Yuuma," He growled under his breath as he looked at his bandaged arm. "Not by a long shot!"

As if in response to his raging soul, a spark of red flickered around his right arm.


	2. 2: A Deal with A Devil

**Naruto: Fate Breaker**

A/N: Hello everybody! Sorry for the long delay on this. I've been suffering a bit with writer's block with TLR so that's going to take a bit longer for the next chapter to be released. Also you may have noticed the title has changed. This was previously known as Cursed Child but that made the story out to be a bit darker than I was intending. This title is a bit more unique and fitting for the story.

Unlike the first chapter, this one is much shorter sitting at 13K words and builds a little on the Character relationships. Hopefully you all enjoy it.

Advance warning that Naruto is still getting to grips with his powers. His strength starts to increase from this point onwards though.

Have any questions that you want to ask me? I have a link to a discord group in my profile where you can get in touch with me. I am planning to use this to host polls etc. in the future should it get a large enough following.

Don't have/ want to join the Discord? Simply PM me and I will respond as soon as I can.

Disclaimer: The characters mentioned in this story are the property of their respective owners.

* * *

 **Chapter the Second: A Deal with a Devil  
**

 _In which an agreement is made, a devil attacks and a cunning plan is foiled by condiments_

There was a gentle breeze that ran through the meadow, creating a subtle wave as the grass bobbed and swayed as if waving to the sole observer who sat beneath the wide branches of an old oak tree. Naruto Uzumaki let out a soft sigh as he watched the dancing grass. There was something so inherently relaxing about the place, as if all his fears and concerns were little more than minor nuisances that, for the moment at least, could be completely disregarded. In this blissful state of mind, he turned his attention to the large oak that was serving as a backrest for him

After getting a good look at the towering plant, Naruto was no longer sure it was an oak. In fact, it looked like no tree he had ever seen before and he got the feeling that you wouldn't find this tree anywhere in the world (not that he would claim to be an expert on it, it was just the feeling he got staring at it). While looking up at the branches, he noticed that there was an absence of any flowers or fruits, save a strange, golden apple that hung just out of reach. Part of him felt that it was wrong to pluck the last fruit from the tree but at the same time a deep desire started to swell within him. He _needed_ to taste that apple.

Before he could act on this strange, invasive impulse there was a sensation of movement and Naruto span around to see the other resident of this strange area.

" _Welcome back, Cursed Child."_ Again, Naruto couldn't see the figure's face to read their lips, nor could he hear a voice. It was as if the words were put directly into Naruto's head without bothering to pass through the air between the two figures.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked. "And where am I?"

" _Who am I? In time I hope to be called a friend of yours, cursed child."_ The figure looked in off into the distance, almost looking like a fisherman's wife staring out to sea, awaiting her beloved's return.

"Where are we? I feel… like this place is familiar to me."

" _You are full of questions child."_ There was an odd sensation that Naruto assumed was a chuckle, " _If I were to give a name to this place it would be home."_ The faceless figure bent down and plucked a small flower with beautiful white petals, tipped with blue.

"Home?" Naruto crouched down next to the figure, who offered the flower to him.

" _When the evils of the world get you down… Home is a safe place where you can shut out the outside world, if only temporarily."_ The figure stroked his hair, causing Naruto to feel sleepy as he held the strange flower in his hands.

"I can't sleep… I need to save Asia… and avenge Issei…" He mumbled, his lids feeling incredibly heavy.

" _The Tapestry of Fate decrees that Asia Argento shall die in six days' time, but your soul is weary and needs to rest. Settle down for an hour or more. I will watch over you."_

"The what?" Naruto mumbled in response as he felt the warmth surround him and melt away his inhibitions. All he wanted to do was nap.

" _Sleep my precious little cursed child. The time for fighting will come, but for now conserve your energy and make friends. Make many friends…"_

The figure hummed a gentle song that sounded familiar to Naruto, but the blonde couldn't place it. He opened his mouth to ask about it but before the words left his lips, his entire body felt like it been submerged in ice and it forced the air from his lungs as he was forcibly woken up.

"WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL?!" Naruto shot upright and looked around furiously until his eyes settled on a smug looking Jiraiya holding a suspiciously empty and wet bucket.

"Good morning!" Jiraiya laughed as he dodged Naruto's clumsy pillow throw, "You've been sleeping for too long! You're going to be late for work if you aren't quick."

"Work?" Naruto glanced down at his soaked body and bed, "I don't have time for work… I need to get stronger, so I can save Asia!"

"The continent?" The perverted fallen angel smirked at Naruto's deadpan look. "Listen I get that you want to save that girl, but you've got to remember your main objective of winning over the leaders of the three factions. Look, if you get yourself killed, I'm the one who'll have to explain to your dad, mom and sisters why you won't be able to spend time with them anymore. Do you want that? To make your family cry?"

"Of course not!"

"Then use your damn brain!" Jiraiya tossed the bucked at Naruto who caught it. "Now get dressed, go to your job and try and gather intelligence. If there is a large devil presence like I originally suspected, then maybe they can help you out."

"Fine," Naruto grumbled as he rolled out of his sodden bed and reached for a towel that was tossed over a chair, while Jiraiya went downstairs to make breakfast. As he got dressed, he couldn't help but feel he was wasting time. Frowning slightly, he attempted to use the Shadow Clone spell he had managed to perform against Raynare and grinned as he saw a perfect replica of himself standing before him. To think he was using too much energy all this time. He shook his head, completely oblivious to the sodden white flower washed underneath a small set of drawers.

After grabbing a quick bite to eat and getting his left arm re-bandaged, Naruto set off out of the small house, tailed by Jiraiya who had sealed the building after they'd left.

"Where are you going?" Naruto scowled.

"What? Can't I have a social life?" Jiraiya sighed dramatically. "For your information I am going to meet up with some old friends to exchange information to help keep you safe. You're welcome by the way."

"Ah…" Naruto felt a bit bad about his attitude, then remembered the bucket of water and decided he wasn't being unfair, Jiraiya was just an asshole. "Not that I don't appreciate you keeping me safe, but couldn't you actually teach me something as well?"

"Oh? Are you asking for the Mighty Jiraiya-sama's help?" Jiraiya smirked. "I guess you weren't smart enough to crack this training thing by yourself. Well I suppose I can lend some of my valuable time to training you. I'll see you back at home." With a brisk wave, the fallen angel suddenly vanished, leaving only a swirl of feathers.

Naruto looked around, but the people on the street didn't seem to react to Jiraiya's presence or disappearance, so the blonde assumed there was some sort of charm that meant people around here couldn't see what happened in the old pervert's garden. The idea that Jiraiya had access to a spell that meant people couldn't observe him worried Naruto, but the trainee mage figured it was a concern for another time.

As he walked through the park on the way to Kuoh, he got a sad feeling in his stomach as he looked at the tree where he had first seen Issei. When he had last seen her, she was on death's door and she hadn't been there when Naruto had woken up. Placing a hand on the tree, her muttered a brief prayer before standing back. "I won't let anyone else suffer like you di- "

Before he could finish, he was hit in the stomach by a brown-haired blur which proceeded to lock its arms and legs around him, effectively latching onto him. Instinctively, he hugged the girl to his chest as they rolled on the floor and came to a halt.

"NARUTO!" A beaming Issei cried out as she clutched onto his jacket. "I thought you were dead! But you're not!" She buried her head into his chest. "Yep… your warm so you're not a zombie! Wait! Maybe you're a zombie with a heater installed. I'll bet a zombie could never get an erection so if you show me that I'll know for sure!"

"I-Issei? Is that really you?" Naruto blinked stupidly as the brunette looked up at him, her eyes brimming with happiness. "I…" He let out a sigh that was equal parts relief, joy and exasperation, "It's good to see you Issei."

"You seem surprised to see her alive." A blunt voice remarked, and Naruto looked up to see Akeno smiling down at him coldly. "Is there a reason for that?"

"Er…" Naruto felt a cold sweat break out. "W-well… you see," There was a nervous chuckle as he desperately tried to think of some sort of explanation, all the while feeling Akeno's hostile intent.

Fortunately, or possibly unfortunately, Naruto's dilemma was short lived as another member of Kuoh academy showed up, and with her another problem.

"Uzumaki-san, assaulting a student is an unforgivable offence." If Akeno's attitude was cold, Tsubaki's was arctic levels of freezing,

"Ah!" Naruto struggled to his feet, assisted by a clearly ecstatic Issei. After a couple of minutes being death glared by the two girls, Naruto found himself standing upright, a mostly calmed down Issei stood by his side. "This isn't what you think!"

"You shall explain yourself to the President," Tsubaki remarked, "Follow me."

"If I may interject," Akeno coughed gently, "I believe Shitori-san is incredibly busy and as Issei-chan is a member of the same club as me, I shall take care of this."

"I believe Shitori-san already gave Gremory-san her word that she would deal with _this_ matter." Tsubaki looked at Akeno, who merely tilted her head with a mischievous smile.

"Issei," Naruto whispered to the bouncy youth who was nodding sagely. "What is going on here?"

"Isn't it obvious? They both want to get you alone! It must be your Harem Protag aura!" She gave him a grin and a thumbs up, resulting in the two arguing girls turning their attention to her.

"You do say some strange things Issei-chan," Akeno smiled at her fellow Occult club member. "Although I wouldn't mind getting some one-on-one time with Uzumaki-kun."

Despite the sugary sweet tone, Naruto knew that should that happen, he would be in severe danger.

"W-what are you implying?!" Unlike Akeno, it was clear Tsubaki was flustered by the remark. "I am merely acting as my role as Vice President and there was an incident at school that the president wishes to investigate. Uzumaki-san is a key person of interest." She adjusted her glasses. "Now come Uzumaki-san. I believe Hyoudou-san and Himejima-san have classes to attend."

"Bye Naruto! I'll talk to you later! There are lots of things I need to tell you like…" Whatever she was about to say was lost to the blonde as Akeno put a hand over Issei's mouth and whispered something into her ear. "Err… Later!" Issei waved energetically and followed Akeno elsewhere.

As he watched them go, Naruto got a sinking feeling. He was sure that Issei should have died from her wounds unless she was also saved by the Fallen Angels. On top of that, Akeno was giving him similar vibes to Raynare. If he was right, Issei could also be in danger much like Asia was and he had to do something to help her out, but first he had to survive his meeting with the demon school president.

* * *

Jiraiya groaned as he leaned back on the wooden bench, a soft smile gracing his features as he looked at his surroundings. He was currently sat in the large park, barely meters away from the fountain where Naruto and Issei had discovered Raynare's identity. It was hard to tell a tragic scene had played out less than twelve hours ago, with people happily walking around and chatting.

It appeared that Raynare and her accomplices had erected a small distortion, somewhat like the 'Reality Marble' concept that some mages referred to. The moment the trap was sprung, there was no way for Naruto or Issei to escape, at least not with their limited strength and knowledge of the magic arts. They were in a small area of space cut off from reality with Raynare or her acquaintance in charge of who could get in or out. Even with his seal removed, Naruto's aura was completely cut off from the real world and thus undetectable unless someone was using a specific way of monitoring that scanned outside the real world. Jiraiya made a mental note to improve his own detection system, seeing as he he didn't realise Naruto was in trouble until after Raynare had defeated him.

The fallen angel winced a little as he considered the outcome of his initial investigation. It was clear from the equipment they had been supplied that someone high up in the chain of command had been involved in the plan to kill the Sacred Gear holder Issei. It was also clear that it _wasn't_ Azazel himself. The document providing them with details was a forgery, a good one to be sure but Jiraiya's bread and butter were intelligence work. If a document could fool him, it probably deserved to not get caught.

He knew the brat would no doubt get involved to save the girl, even if it put his own life in more danger; he was like his father in that respect. With this mission being so dubious he was pretty sure that when the kid when running in, he'd be able to run enough damage control that the Fallen wouldn't become hostile to Naruto. At least he hoped so.

He paused in his thoughts as a group of young, beautiful women went by. It was a complete coincidence that Jiraiya happened to be in the park the same time as the young mothers' exercise club were doing their daily jogs, but Jiraiya believed them being here at this time was a clear sign from the Father that He approved of Jiraiya's work. He allowed himself a few more moments before deciding to address the figure that had somehow appeared next to him on the bench.

"Good morning," The figure was slouched lazily, wearing a large maroon coat over a waist coat and shirt, making him look like a businessman taking a break. His black hair was accented by blonde bangs and his facial hair was styled in a goatee. He looked like a devil, who had appeared from nowhere to offer a suspicious deal which granted your wishes at a cost.

"This is a surprise," Jiraiya raised an eyebrow. "To think the boss of the Fallen Angels, Azazel himself would visit me in person? I am honoured."

"Well you know me," Azazel waved a hand dismissively. "I heard there were some beautiful women and came to check in on them. There were rumours of an old pervert scaring them, so I figured I'd do my duty."

"Well you can never be too careful." Jiraiya conceded. "I've heard there was a bit of trouble in these parts."

"Huh?" A brief flicker of genuine confusion passed across the fallen angel's face. "Oh, the Sacred Gear incident?" He waved dismissively. "It all worked out in the end. The Gremory Clan reincarnated her so that's all over and done with now."

"Well, if it's all over and done with," Jiraiya watched the people walking past, his mind racing. Azazel being here meant something big was going to happen, and he feared it involved Naruto.

"Indeed, although I can't help but feel if I had someone a bit more… experienced in charge of handling operations such an embarrassing event would never have occurred."

"Is this a recruitment pitch?" Jiraiya chuckled, feeling some of the tension leave his body, "I've already told you, I have no interest in the Three Factions."

"There has been some… interesting developments." Azazel scowled. "The Angels have increased their patrols in this area."

"Increased patrols? That's odd but I don't see what so interesting about it." Jiraiya shrugged.

"…I've heard it is Gabriel who is in charge of these new developments." Azazel scratched his cheek.

"Are you serious?" Jiraiya scowled.

"I'm sure I don't need to remind you the last time Gabriel actually got involved with the more militant side of things was when the Beast was running rampant."

"I remember. I was still wearing the white wings then." The old pervert responded curtly.

"So, I am going to ask you two questions. Do you believe that this world without God can continue?"

"Life will go on," Jiraiya shrugged. "And I'm perfectly happy to see that."

"Good," Azazel nodded. "Despite what heaven and the Guardians of the Tapestry may believe, the world is not ending. The second question is simple."

"Oh?"

"Where is the Cursed Child?"

Jiraiya mentally congratulated himself on his complete lack of a reaction. "Didn't Michael kill him after I messed up sealing the kid to hide him?"

"Of course," Azazel looked at the sky with an odd look on his face. "Will you humour me and listen to a wild conspiracy theory?"

"Sure," Jiraiya shrugged.

"Let's say that there was a high-ranking angel who was trying to save his best friend's son. He knew so long as heaven knew the boy was alive, it would not rest until the child was destroyed, so he found a child that looked similar. He deliberately put a rushed looking seal on it that rather than suppress the aura of a child, amplified it so that even a normal human baby gave readings like that of the cursed child but slightly subdued to look convincing. He then correctly sealed the real deal and fled with the child, knowing Michael would destroy the innocent decoy then leave the boy alone, but the guilt of sacrificing a baby caused the angel to fall from grace" Azazel glanced at Jiraiya. "Do you like this theory?"

"You have a wild imagination," Jiraiya glanced at the leader of the Fallen Angels. "I almost wish that was the truth. Sounds more badass than a coward who panicked then fled, leaving an incorrectly sealed child to be slain."

"For a coward you seem awfully calm right now," Azazel got up and started to walk away, "Well then, I have places to be. Don't be a stranger and remember, my offer is always open."

"I'll think about it." Jiraiya started to walk away but the other fallen angel's response froze him in place.

"Tell Naruto-kun I said hi and I look forward to seeing what the Cursed Child can do."

Jiraiya felt as deep fear spread through him but when he turned to face Azazel, he had vanished without a sight.

"Shit." Jiraiya grumbled.

It looked like he would have to start getting more hands on with Naruto's training.

* * *

Naruto was deep in thought as he followed Tsubaki to the school, so much so he failed to notice all the girls stopping and whispering to each other. If Tsubaki noticed, it was impossible to tell as she kept her features carefully schooled in a stern expression and she didn't speak at all until they had arrived at the student president's office.

As they entered the room, he immediately noticed the strange tom-boy who caused him headaches when he looked at her, so he quickly diverted his attention to the rest of the people in the room. There were a few empty seats but currently Shitori Souna, Saji Genshirou and another girl he didn't recognise were waiting for him.

On seeing him the new girl burst into a wide smile and waved at him, making him think of an excitable little puppy. Her hair was a reddish brown and had her bangs swept across her forehead. A single strand of hair poked from the top, wagging almost like a tail, an action that was mimicked by her short twin tails either side of her head.

"Oh Pres! This is the new hire? I wish he was a little younger looking so I could be a big sister to him!" She sighed dramatically. "Instead we got an older type… Although he does look like he is unreliable and needs looking after though."

"That's enough Meguri-san," Tsubaki remarked as she entered the room. "It is impolite to not introduce yourself correctly."

"Ah right," She laughed, "Well my name is Meguri Tomoe~ Pleased to meet you!"

"Er… Hi," Naruto rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, "Uzumaki Naruto."

"Ah so shy! If only you were five years younger," She let out a disappointed sigh.

"I trust you are well," Souna's voice cut through the easy-going atmosphere that Tomoe had managed to create, leaving Naruto suddenly feeling very nervous.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," Naruto beamed. "Er… How are you doing?"

"I am quite busy, so this shouldn't take too long," Souna looked at him sternly. "Please take a seat."

"Er…" He gulped and did as she requested as Tsubaki took her place by Souna's side. "So… What is this about? Has my work been unsatisfactory?"

"Overlooking the numerous times, you have been caught in… incriminating situations your work is currently acceptable. There was a festival on yesterday, correct? One quite close to school."

"Yeah," Naruto nodded. "I went there with Hyoudou-san and… er… Yuuma-chan."

"Yuuma. She is not a member of this school, so I don't know much about her." Souna frowned.

"Oh…" Naruto suddenly felt as if a weight was lifted from his shoulders as he realised what this was all about. Since Issei wasn't dead, the council wouldn't know about the attack, so they were probably grilling him about going on a sort of date with a pupil when he was a member of staff. Worst case scenario he would get fired which helped him out. "I know I went on a date with a pupil and that I shouldn't have."

"Hm?" Souna raised an eyebrow. "How did this date end?"

"Oh…" Naruto laughed weakly, "Well, I guess… Nothing much happened."

"So, her nearly dying counts as not much?"

The room hadn't exactly been comfortable before, but after those words it become oppressively intense.

"W-what do you mean?" Naruto gulped. _'What the hell? If she knows about that then… could she be in league with the Fallen Angels? Damn it…'_

"Are you playing dumb right now?" Souna stood up suddenly and slammed her palms on the table. "Your left arm is clearly magical, and given the seals placed upon it you must know that. We know you were there, and we know that Hyoudou Issei was nearly killed. But what we don't know is why you were there or how you survived. I take threats to my fellow students very seriously. Now tell me exactly what happened." She never raised her voice, but Naruto could feel the anger behind her calm façade.

"Look this 'Yuuma-chan' was a fallen angel who was trying to get close to Issei. I don't know why but she wanted to kill her, and I guess the fallen angels didn't think I was important enough to kill."

"So, they just left you alive? Didn't you try and defend Hyoudou-san?"

"Look, I tried to fight but I was no match! I don't know why she decided against killing me!" Naruto defended himself. "Is this going to take long? I have something I have to do…"

"I'm asking the questions here," Souna narrowed her eyes.

"According to our records, the area where Uzumaki-san lives is rumoured to be hiding a powerful Fallen Angel." Tsubaki spoke up.

"I see," Souna looked at Naruto, "So you are a Fallen Angel agent who lead one of this school's students to her would-be assassin?"

"Like hell I am!" Naruto stood upright, causing all the members of Souna's peerage to fall into combat stances, besides the president who remained seated looking at Naruto calmly. "I'll admit I live with a Fallen Angel but from what he claims he has nothing to do with the three factions! Plus, they are planning to kill someone, and I have to stop it!"

"Who?" The entire room paused and Souna leaned forwards, the cold look in her eyes promising trouble if Naruto didn't answer.

"Asia…" Naruto relented under the force of her glare.

"They want to kill an entire continent?"

"What? No! Argento Asia, she's a nun or something. She healed me after I was beaten by the fallen angels."

"So, these Fallen Angels are holding a prisoner?" There was a flash of distaste across Tsubaki's face, but she was silenced by a nod from Souna.

"Yeah and I have to save her!" Naruto declared.

"Why? Did she make you agree to that in order to be healed?" Souna asked.

"No but… I have little sisters and she reminds me of them." He faltered at the weak reason before rallying, "Look, I can't just leave her to be executed!"

"I see," Souna frowned. "And what exactly is your plan, Uzumaki-san?" She got up from her chair and walked behind the seated Naruto, rested her hands on his shoulders, leaning over and whispering directly into his ear. "When you just said you were completely helpless against them? Do you plan to die against them just to sate your guilt at abandoning her?"

"No! I…" Naruto clenched his fists. "I'm still working on a plan. I just… I can't leave her behind like that. It doesn't feel right. Maybe I'll die if i try but if I let her die and do nothing... My soul will never recover. "

There was a long silence as Naruto calmed down and Souna remained behind him, looking at him critically as if thinking hard about something.

"For what it's worth… I believe he is telling the truth," Tsubaki broke the silence. "What he says matches what we have heard from Issei-san, up to a point anyway."

"I agree," Souna nodded. "It really does appear that you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I can't decide if you were unlucky to get caught in it, or lucky to survive. Still," She turned to her peerage, "I don't like the idea of Fallen Angels conducting rituals in my territory. Tomoe, I want you to keep an eye on them."

"Should we make plans to rescue the hostage?" Tsubaki asked.

"No… I have no intentions of starting the war again. However, should we need to defend ourselves I would prefer to be aware of what they are doing." Souna stared at Naruto as she walked back to her seat. "Hmm… You said you wanted to save this Argento Asia?"

"I won't let her die." The blonde clenched his fists. "If you can offer any help…" Naruto swallowed his pride and stood up and bowed until his chest was parallel with the floor. "Please help me."

There was a smile as Souna looked at the bowing youth. A quick glance at her peerage members was rewarded with nods all around.

"I suppose I should introduce myself properly," She stood up from her chair and two black almost bat-like wings sprung from her back. "My real name is Sitri Sona, current heiress of the Sitri clan, one of the remaining 72 Pillars."

"Those are like the devil royalty or something right?" Naruto screwed up his face, "I remember being told they were important. Does that make you a princess or something?"

"Not quite that high, maybe more like a noble," Sona corrected him, "But I am glad to see you at least know of the basics, even if it is not quite to the level I was hoping. Everyone in this room is a member of my peerage."

"Peerage?" Naruto blinked.

"You don't know about them? Well it doesn't matter, they are essentially my close friends and allies." Sona waved a hand dismissively. "However, I do believe you and I can come to an agreement."

"What do you mean?" Naruto felt a shiver down his spine as Sona looked at him. Given her uniform and the lighting in the room, he felt like he was bargaining his soul for power.

"I cannot interfere in Fallen Angel business as I am a high-Ranking Devil, and for me to get involved could be taken as a declaration of war. However, if some un-affiliated being happened to get involved…"

"What are you getting at?" Naruto scowled.

"You _are_ the school's janitor." There was a ghost of a smile on Sitri's face. "Isn't it your job to clean up the trash and… find solutions to problems that affect the running of the school? Of course, it would be a given that you will be provided training to help you perform your duties. You are free to refuse of course, but I feel this helps us both. I provide you with the training, you get to save the nun and… get a promotion from the boring labour jobs and become a… 'Specialist Problem Solver'. It's a win-win situation. What do you say?"

"If it helps me save Asia… I accept." Naruto looked at Sitri before bowing his head. "Thank you."

"It's a little premature to be thanking me just yet," there was a hint of red on her cheeks, taken aback by the earnest sentiment in his voice. "I look forward to working with you Uzumaki Naruto. Consider this week a trial period. Should you succeed in a satisfactory fashion, I will make the arrangements to pull you from your menial tasks and help set you up for your… new line of work."

"How so?" Naruto asked.

"If you are to be of use to the school, I can arrange to hire you out to others who might require your skills. Such jobs would no doubt build your reputation and help you achieve fame and fortune or whatever it is your heart desires."

"How can you, a mere student council president, pull these sorts of strings?" Naruto blinked in disbelief.

"She is Sitri Sona-sama! An Heiress to one of the most powerful clans of the 72 Pillars! Her big sister is the Leviathan!" Tsubaki interjected in a curt voice, until a subtle chuckle from Sona caused the vice president to calm down.

"L-Leviathan?!" Naruto had images of a great serpentine demon, radiating malice and evil energy.

"Indeed," Sona nodded. "I am sure having good relations with someone in contact with one of the Four Satans can only be a good thing."

"Wait…" Naruto blinked. _'If I remember Jiraiya said I have to win over the four Satans right? Could it be that the old pervert did have a good reason for sending me here? Plus, if this goes well, I could earn the favour of the Devils really easily! This seems too good to be true... Still I have no choice but to accept it.'_ "I… guess that would be useful." He responded, hoping he didn't give away his true feelings on the matter.

"Then return here after you have finished working and we will see what you can do." Sona idly waved him away.

Naruto nodded and left the room, his mind whirling with thoughts about his current situation although the instant he stepped out of the student council room, he got a shiver down his spine and a more immediate concern replaced his turmoiled thoughts.

"So, this is where you were, kouhai-chan~" A dark voice dripping with malice announced the presence of a furious Maid-sempai, her smile twitching with barely restrained rage. "Skipping on work to chat with some cute girls huh? Do you know how much of your work I've had to do today?!"

"S-sorry!" Naruto cried out as the maid grabbed him and dragged him along behind her.

* * *

"Honey I'm home!" A cheerful Kushina called out as she walked into the house, pausing as she saw two giant packages in the main hallway. They had this address on them but were labelled 'Naruto Uzumaki', "Huh… Did Naru-chan order something and forget to tell me?"

She frowned slightly at the boxes. Each one was quite large, and she wondered what he precious little boy had been ordering.

"Welcome home," Minato walked out of the kitchen, wiping his hands on the apron he was wearing. "Ah… I see you found the packages."

"It's a bit hard to miss them," Kushina noticed the strange twinkle in her husband's eyes and decided to look at the boxes again, before realisation dawned and she smirked at him. "I guess if they are presents for Naruto, we'd best send them to his new address, right?"

"Indeed." Minato nodded and the two lifted the boxes, carrying them to the car and pretending not to hear the muffled snickers from one of the boxes or the air holes strategically placed on them. With their cargo secured, Minato and Kushina got into the car and proceeded to drive around the block a few times before returning home and unloading the packages.

"It looks like Naruto-kun is at school, so I guess we'd best leave the parcels here in his hallway then head back home," Kushina remarked.

"I guess so," Minato walked over and opened the door, before shutting it again and putting a finger on his lips, earning a beaming grin from Kushina.

"Mwahaha!" One of the boxes erupted and a triumphant Tsunade leapt out. "Operation: Infiltrate Onii-chan's house was a success!"

"Really?" Kushina sighed. "Was that your plan?"

"Gargh?!" Tsunade did a double take as she realised where they were. "W-wait! This is our house! This isn't Naru-nii's place! You tricked me!"

"How many times do I have to tell you?" Minato sighed tiredly. "You can't see Naruto just yet. You need to be patient."

"They say absence makes the heart grow fonder," Kushina nodded sagely. "I'll bet your big brother is aching to see you again so just wait for him, okay?"

Before Tsunade could reply there was a buzzing noise and Minato glanced at his phone.

"Who's texting you? Is it Naruto?" Kushina asked, with Tsunade bouncing at her dad, trying to get the phone.

"Let me see! Is he saying he misses me?!" The energetic twin exclaimed.

"It's from your school, apparently Mito-chan is going to be late home today as she has extra work as the Student President." Minato shook his head as he looked at the remaining package. "Do you know, I'm worried Naruto might be in the drug trade."

"Eh?" Kushina flinched, "Our precious little boy would never…"

"I was reading online, the only way to tell for sure is to use pepper," The mischievous smile on Minato's face transferred to Kushina as she realised what he was intending. "You sprinkle pepper on a package and if there is a strong smell then that means it is a batch of drugs."

"Oh yeah! We really should just test it, to make sure there aren't any bad influences, right?"

After a brief stop at the kitchen, Kushina was gleefully sprinkling small bits of pepper into the air holes. The box was vibrating, almost as if there was something inside that was desperately trying not to sneeze.

"Let me!" Tsunade joyfully grabbed the pepper shaker and removed the top, dumping the entire contents into one of the air holes and was rewarded by an almighty sneeze and a cry of pain.

"My eyes you uncultured swine!" Mito cried out in pain as she kicked her way out of the box, coughing and wheezing while brushing the pepper from her. "I should have known letting you join me in this plan would doom my attempts. Your ineptitude in stealth is, like your lack of intelligence, truly something horrendous."

"H-Hey!" Tsunade crossed her arms. "It's not my fault your plan was stupid!"

"Stupid?" Mito drew herself up to her full height, "My plan was fool proof!"

"Clearly not!" Tsunade countered.

"Did she…" Kushina glanced at her husband who was rubbing his temples.

"That's enough you two." Minato sternly interrupted the two girls who fell uncharacteristically silent and looked at their feet. "I get that you miss your brother but what would have if we had sent you through the post? You could have gotten lost or you might have gotten Naruto arrested since they thought he was buying girls online or something."

"I didn't want to get Naru-nii into trouble!" Tsunade mumbled.

"I… I didn't fully think this through and for that I apologise." Mito bowed her head. "My plan could have caused trouble for everyone."

"So long as you understand." Minato smiled.

"My next plan will definitely be better thought out." Mito bowed her head and retreated to her room, closely followed by Tsunade.

' _She's learned nothing…'_ Minato and Kushina shared a mental sigh of exhaustion.

* * *

Naruto fidgeted outside the door to Sona's student council. She had said for him to return after he finished his work, but he was certain there were still classes underway and that she wouldn't be in the office. After standing for several minutes he decided he could at least sit down inside and wait for the president. Happy with the logic he opened the door and froze as he saw a half-naked figure turn to look at him.

"What the…" Naruto blinked as his brain processed what his eyes were reporting. A somewhat sheepish guy was stood staring at him, half-wearing the student uniform. He had clearly stumbled across some pervert who had broken into the office to wear the girl's uniform. "Hey! Who the hell are you?"

"What… Ah crap I dropped the illusion didn't I?" The guy sighed dramatically. "I'm gonna get a lecture about this later on, I just know it."

"Illusion?" Naruto lowered himself into a combat stance, "Who're you and why're you here?"

"I'm… A Fallen Angel agent, call me er… Supun!" The blonde crossdresser suddenly grinned as if having a brilliant idea. "What are you gonna do about it?"

"Why are you here?!" Naruto bit his lip angrily. His humbling defeat was still clear on his mind, but if he needed to, he would act, if only in the hope he attracted Sona or her peerage for assistance.

"Just came to steal… this." 'Supun' looked at the student council before snatching what looked like a normal ruler.

"A ruler? Oh, I get it. The ruler used by the president. You're some sort of pervert, aren't you?" Naruto shivered.

"Pervert?!" The guy crossed his arms angrily. "I'll have you know this is… er… a really important magical weapon!"

"Uh-huh." Naruto deadpanned. "And I'm sure the girl's outfit is some all-powerful armour."

"It might be! Or maybe I just like to have a bit of air around the boys while you are fine suffocating them! Ya gotta let em breathe!"

"Whatever you say." Naruto's tone of voice made it clear that he didn't believe him.

"Don't you think you should be respectful of someone far stronger than ya? Did the ass whopping you received last time not enough?"

"Tch," Naruto flinched at the remark, clenching his fists so hard he could almost feel his nails cutting into his flesh. Still he didn't rise to the remark, although his antagonist seemed almost disappointed by this.

"Well I guess it doesn't matter." Supun cockily remarked before idly pointing at Naruto with the ruler. "I guess I'll have to kill you before I leave huh?"

"What?!" Naruto turned to leave only to find that all the doors and windows to the room had vanished. "What's going on?"

"Oh, come on, this isn't your first time in Separated Space. Oh right, you mage types call it a Reality Marble, right?"

"Reality Marble?"

"You really don't know a whole lot, do you?" The half-naked crossdresser sighed dramatically. "This is an area separated away from reality. Long story short, you can't escape, and I can go wild without attracting any attention."

Before Naruto could respond, the assailant clicked his fingers and the walls faded away revealing a large barren wasteland littered with boulders.

"I like to call this the DBZ Trai… I mean Killing Room." Supun began stretching out, a sight Naruto could have done without as it turned out he was wearing girls' panties as well, which didn't hide much when he started lunging.

"So, we are completely sealed off huh," Naruto sighed as he threw off his work coat before he ripped the bandages from his left arm. "So much for waiting for the student council to show up."

"Huh," The assailant grinned in an unnerving style, "That's a pretty strong aura your fist is giving off. This could be fun. Go on…" He tapped his chin, "Let's see what ya got."

"Bastard," Naruto cursed the cocky attitude of Supun and clenched his fist.

"I won't dodge I promise. It's not like I'll need to." Supun smirked. "I'll bet I don't even have to use promotion to beat you."

"We'll see about that." Naruto had no idea what this promotion ability was, but he was pretty sure that he needed to defeat this Supun before he could use it.

For his part, Supun watched Naruto's charge, smug in the knowledge he was safe from harm. That smugness lasted up until Naruto made contact and the sudden burst of divine energy struck him, sending him sprawling through the wasteland and through a boulder.

"Wahahaha!" There was a cackle and the youth jumped to his feet, wiping a trail of blood from his mouth. "That hurt! The Pres was right… Your left hand is definitely an Anti-Devil weapon. This could be fun! Let's see if you can land a hit when I'm sort of trying. Promotion: Rook!"

"Tch," Naruto scowled as he watched the boy stroll towards him, before flickering from existence. _'What the hell?! Where is he? Behind? Above?!'_ Naruto leapt backwards as the floor exploded and his laughing aggressor burst from the floor, brushing the dirt from his clothes. "Below?!"

"So, you could sense my attack? Interesting. Let's see how far you can go eh?"

"Crap!" Naruto cried out in alarm as the youth charged him and launched a straight jab, radiating some malign energy. The Nephilim was just able to raise his glowing arm to guard his vitals, but the impact sent intense vibrations from his entire body, breaking his guard as the boy readied another punch, only to get blindsided by a clone.

"What?!" The attacker seemed surprised by this but wiped out the clone in a single punch. "Solid Clones? The hell sorta spell is that? That can't be an amateur spell…" He turned to Naruto who had recovered his balance and increased the difference between the two. "Are you actually a magus rank? Strange… I had you pegged as a melee idiot like me."

"If I can't win on quality, guess I'll have to go for quantity," Naruto declared as he suddenly charged, a group of five clones flanking him.

"100 times zero is still zero," Supun mocked, content to let Naruto launch his attack.

"Whoops," He laughed as Naruto glowing punch sailed over his head, resulting in a powerful knee to the stomach that sent Naruto hurtling into the air as his clones continued their furious assault on the laughing fallen angel agent, however everywhere they struck, the assailant managed not to be. It was like trying to punch a fog as the magical constructs failed to connect with anything solid. In the rare cases they did, it was like punching concrete and the agent barely registered the impact.

"Damn it…" Naruto was crouched on the floor after landing from the attack he had received. It pissed him off that he could tell the attacker was holding back and yet with a single knee, Naruto was practically beaten. He could taste his blood in his mouth and watching the guy play with five of his clones was disheartening. He racked his mind for a plan. It was clear that he only seemed interested in the original, merely playing with the clones yet he tried to counter the real Naruto. He needed to land another punch with his left but so long as the fallen angel agent was paying attention to his movements there was no chance of landing a blow.

"Okay I'm bored." With a minimal amount of effort, the agent sent all five clones flying away, with one striking Naruto and dispersing in a puff of smoke, before Naruto charged from the smoke, his fist glowing with the divine energy coursing through it.

"Bastard!" Naruto yelled as he ran from the smoke and headed sharply left before charging the bemused fallen angel servant.

"Come on, stop trying to hit me and hit me!" Supun mocked.

"Eat this!" Naruto lunged at him, but the agent just laughed and grabbed his arm tightly, pausing as he sensed the clone attacking him from behind. "Haven't you realised those clones are nothing but distractions? They can't hurt me."

"Yeah… I noticed." Naruto smirked. "We do make good distractions, don't we?"

"What?" That was all the assailant had time to say before the real Naruto punched him in the side of his head with all the energy the blonde could muster. The result was an explosive detonation of considerable force and the cocky assailant was once again sent hurtling, creating craters as he struck the floor before smashing into a small plateau and reducing it to rubble. Naruto himself skidded backwards, his entire left arm screaming in agony and covered with deep cuts and burns.

"Not so cocky this time…" Naruto panted as the distraction clone disappeared. Glancing at his left arm, he winced at the sight of his self-inflicted wounds but noting that the glow was almost completely gone from his arm. "That much energy must have put him down."

"That's what I'm talking about!" There was a boisterous laugh and Supun staggered from the smoke left from the attack. The left side of his face was swollen, and his left eye was forced shut by the swelling. Most of the girl's uniform had been destroyed, leaving the pervert in scraps of cloth and panties. "I knew I sensed something worthwhile! Come on! Is that all ya got?" There was an almost feral look in his eyes as he advanced on the panting Naruto.

"D-Damn it… I need to recover my breath," He started to retreat only for a strange beam of light to wrap around his wrist and a severe sense of fatigue to wash over him.

"Wait… What is this?" He looked at his arm confused as he tried to break the beam of energy but before he could grab at it, he felt all his strength sap out of him. "What…" He fell to one knee, unable to find the strength to even speak.

"I guess that's it huh? Still…" Supun smirked as he held out his arm, a strange faced lizard on his arm from which the beam originated. "Is this your first time seeing a Sacred Gear? Ha, to think I plucked that cherry." He laughed boisterously.

"Sacred Gear?" Naruto struggled to his feet. "Isn't… Isn't that what Raynare wanted to kill Issei for?"

"There are many types." The youth smirked. "In the spirit of fair play, I'll tell you what mine is. This is called Absorption Line. It allows me to move energy about, in this case away from you into me. Man… Your energy is sorta spicy… This… This isn't the energy of a human, devil or angel… I don't know why… But I really wanna eat you right now?!"

"What the hell?!" Naruto blinked as the lizard and the assailant's arms started to white and scaled, like the beast form reflection of Naruto's in the mirror of truth.

"I really wanna consume ya… To absorb ya and become one entity... I'm so hungry!" He suddenly launched himself at Naruto, his eyes like golden marbles in a sea of darkness and his mouth wide open, showing cruel teeth that made Naruto think of a shark but before he could bite Naruto, there was a noise like a gunshot and suddenly the line connecting them vanished and the assailant fell to the floor.

"What a troublesome person," Tsubaki sighed as she de-summoned the naginata she had struck him with. "Still, I suppose this is to be expected. He was quite excited at the potential of finding someone interesting to fight. 'A man's gotta have a rival' or whatever it is he keeps telling me."

"Eh?" Naruto blinked stupidly as the discoloration from Supun faded away as the line between them dissappeared.

"Still… I have never seen Genshirou-kun react like that to someone's energy." Tsubaki clicked her fingers and suddenly the exhausted Naruto and now-named Genshirou were back in the student council room. Sona was stood to one side, tapping her finger against her chin and staring at the unconscious 'Supun'.

"Genshirou Supun?" Naruto blinked.

"Supun?" There was a sigh of exasperation from Sona, "Really of all the fake names, his name is Saji, a member of my peerage. I don't know why but he likes to fight and was interested in testing you out. I guess he pretended to be someone else in order to provoke you to fight."

"Oh…" Naruto glanced at the snoring Saji. "Wait?! That's the tomboy who's in the council?!"

"Well that was an… interesting fight," Sona remarked dryly while Naruto processed his discovery. "You have some power, that is undeniable but still…"

"What the hell is going on here?! Why did he wanna eat me?!" Naruto interrupted angrily, causing Sona to raise an eyebrow.

"Remember your place," Tsubaki scowled. "You are in the presence of Sona-sama, you will address her with the respect she deserves."

"And I deserve answers!" Naruto scowled.

"…While I did plan for Saji-kun to test your skills, he wasn't supposed to do it without my approval and for that I apologise. A member of my peerage has caused you trouble." Sona bowed her head slightly.

"O-Oh?" Naruto was taken aback by her humble attitude. "W-well… I guess that's not a problem."

"Good," Before Naruto had time to register the return of her cold professional tone, Sona was stood behind him, analysing his body. "You appeared to take a bit of damage from the knee to your stomach, but it seems as if you have accelerated regeneration. Attack power seems limited, given you can only damage him with your left arm and that last attack of yours appears to have damaged you as well… Or at least it did but the wounds seem to have recovered."

"Eh?" Naruto glanced at his left arm, "Hey, you're right." All the burns had faded and there was only some light bruising on his knuckles.

"That last attack though…" Sona rubbed her forehead. "So much power wasted."

"Eh?" Naruto blinked.

"You released energy in a spherical explosion, no focus at all. Sure, it had a bit of impact behind it, but you probably took more damage than Saji did. Haven't you been taught any control techniques?"

"I'm technically self-taught I guess," Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "And to be fair I only started learning magic about a week ago!"

"A week? What spells did you manage to get a grasp on in that time?"

"W-well… There's the Clone Spell." Naruto started.

"An interesting spell to be sure," Sona nodded. "And?"

"Er… That's sorta… it." He trailed off and felt as if he could see what little respect Sona had for him drain away. "But it's really useful!"

"I'm sure it is," Sona rubbed her forehead, "Moving on, you also seem to have some sort of natural defence against having your energy stolen. I've not seen an ability like that before."

"W-well…" Naruto blinked as Sona ripped his damaged uniform from him in a single motion, revealing his bruised stomach. "W-wait!"

"Minimal bruising and a half-decent muscle mass," Sona mumbled. "Impressive. I may just be able to use you."

"Use me?!" Naruto suddenly covered himself. "W-wait… you're not some sort of Succubus planning to harvest my life force, are you?!"

"Do not assume Sona-sama would do anything of… 'that nature' with one such as yourself!" Tsubaki interrupted Naruto's panic, her face tinged red with a mixture of embarrassment and anger.

"Very well," Sona nodded as she drew several symbols on his left arm that caused the glow to fade away completely. "Unlike your previous seals, these will only restrict your energy rather than attempt to suffocate it. With some basic training exercises, you should be able to draw upon it without removing the seals, which you will need as only I can remove them. Tsubaki, I'm putting you in charge of his training. I expect to see a notable improvement in three days."

"As you wish, my king." Tsubaki bowed her head solemnly.

"Here." Sona walked over to a bookcase before pulling an ancient tome from it, handing it to Naruto. "This is a basic book of devil training exercises. I expect you to have at least read a third of the book before tomorrow."

"B-But this is over 1000 pages long!" Naruto looked at the huge book.

"If you cannot achieve even that, how do you hope to beat this 'Raynare'?" Sona sat in her chair and made an idle gesture at the door, "If you want to be ready for your first training session tomorrow, I would advise you leave immediately."

"Right…" Naruto tried to reach from the book, but his entire body suddenly felt sluggish. "What the hell?!"

"Hm? On in order to suppress your excess energy, I got the seal to use it by applying a weak gravity effect on your entire body." Sona looked up from her work. "So, I would set off now if you want to be home before dark."

"You really a demon." Naruto weakly retorted as he dragged himself out of the room.

"Is that wise?" Tsubaki asked after the doors had closed.

"Usually no… But given his regeneration, I am interested to see if this can promote his physical strength."

"May I ask why you chose me to train him?"

"You are my queen. I expect you to be my hands in these cases where I cannot too obviously be seen interfering." Sona remarked. "It will clearly show that I _am_ involved, but still allows me a degree of plausible deniablity that would change a declaration of war into a heavy fine. I feel he could be useful to me and my plans, so do be sure to make something of him."

"Of course," Tsubaki bowed her head.

"Now then," Sona glanced at the unconscious male. "It looks like punishment is in order. I offer loyalty and respect to my peerage and expect the same in return. I shall think of a way to adequately hammer this knowledge into Saji's head."

If Naruto had seen the dark look on her face, he would realise he was getting off lucky.

* * *

"Evil demon president," Naruto mumbled as he dragged his body home. Deciding to stop for a moment, he headed back into the park and sat down facing the fountain. He had taken the first steps towards saving Asia, but he needed to do more. Part of him doubted it was a good idea to play along with the devil's whims but at this point he had little choice. Jiraiya had effectively passed him off and told him to find his own teachers and that book he was reading had taken him too long, almost a week, to learn what he assumed was a basic spell. There was no way he'd learn anything useful before Asia's execution.

"My, my, brings back memories doesn't it?" A voice that caused a primal terror deep within Naruto's core called out.

"Mr Half-Angel!" A much brighter voice called out and Naruto turned to see Asia beaming at him and waving, accompanied by Raynare who was dressed as a Nun as well.

"Asia-chan…" Naruto smiled warmly. "I'm glad you are well."

"What, pretending I'm not here? How rude considering I saved your life." Raynare sat down beside Naruto while Asia walked up to a small group of children who had gathered near the fountain. The group's faces all lit up when they saw Asia walking towards them.

"Deciding not to kill me isn't the same as saving me," Naruto growled.

"The end result is the same, is it not?" Raynare's smile failed to reach her eyes.

"What are you doing here?" Naruto asked coldly.

"Argento-san is something of a popular attraction for the children. She tells such beautiful stories of hope." There was a clear tone of amusement in her voice that made Naruto want to punch her. "How incredibly naïve of her. She still believes Father is listening."

"Are you really planning to sacrifice her?" Naruto saw no point in beating around the bush.

"Hm? I guess Jiraiya-sama told you that. Indeed, her sacrifice will help strengthen the Fallen Angels."

"And that makes it alright to sentence her to death?" Naruto glared at the Fallen Angel, who merely shrugged.

"Devils and Angels are constantly fighting over the souls of your kind. Why should we Fallen be any different?" Raynare's figure radiated disinterest. "Unlike the devils and angels, we can't reincarnate human souls, so we have to take other methods to ensure the survival of our species. I am sure a weakling such as yourself understands the need to make compromises to survive? Your hatred is a delightfully powerful feeling but even you know to act on it would be death." There was a cruel smirk on her face.

"Do you delight in mocking me?" Naruto grit his teeth angrily, fully aware of the current difference in their power levels.

"Yes," Raynare chuckled. "You two are so alike you know?" She gestured to Asia lazily, "You are both so painfully pure. You believe that there is good in other people. Both of you will learn that in this world you can only trust yourself unless you are very lucky, in which case you might find one person who might just be worth your loyalty."

"Oh? There's someone you look up to? Is it that trench coat weirdo?"

"Dohnaseek? Hardly, he is merely another tool." There was a scoff from the fallen angel, "No Azazel-sama is the one I mean."

"Oh, the head of the Fallen Angels, right?" Naruto frowned. "He must be something then."

"I wouldn't be here if not for him." Raynare remarked bluntly. "Despite there being no real advantage for him doing so."

"Well how do you know he doesn't have ulterior motives. I begrudgingly admit you are somewhat attractive."

She lowered her head, her eyes hidden beneath the shadow cast by the nun's veil she was wearing. "There exists not a soul who would wish to lay with one such as me."

"Well I'll admit your personality is a bit of a turn off, but I doubt it's a deal breaker," Naruto frowned as he looked at the Fallen Angel.

"You speak too much," Raynare fixed him with an icy glare and the blonde realised further questioning would achieve nothing so he turned his attention to Asia. She was surrounded by young children who were listening in awe to her bright sermon. There several older people stood listening raptly as well and the young nun's sermon went on for a few more minutes before Asia bowed and waved goodbye before running over to the pair, her face alight with happiness.

"Thank you for allowing me to come, Raynare-sama." She bowed her head.

"It is fine," Raynare remarked bluntly. "Let us return to the Church."

"Of course. It was nice to meet you again, Mr Half-Angel." Asia smiled widely at Naruto.

"Wait!" Naruto couldn't stay silent, "You can't go back with her. She plans to sacrifice you!"

"Yes, I know." Asia's response knocked all the wind out of his sails.

"W-what? And you are fine with that?!"

"To serve His Angel's… Is there no greater joy?" Asia replied.

"I… But you'll die!"

"To live forever in His service. I, who was cast from the Church, can be welcomed back into His Flock with my actions." She grasped Naruto's hands. "Do not weep for me, for I serve a greater cause."

"I…" Naruto wanted to shake the girl and try to explain his point of view, but he was unable to even start to formulate a response and could only watch as the two figures walked out of the park. "Damn it all…" He cursed under his breath, sitting down on the bench and clenching his fists.

"Aw man! I missed her!" A cheerful voice cut through the darkness in Naruto's head. "Honestly, you'd have loved to meet her! She's so cute and is pretty much the perfect little sister type! Wait… Ah it's Naruto! Hey Naruto!" Issei walked into view, followed by Rias and Akeno, who kept a respectful distance, not that Naruto noticed. "Guess you were here scouting out the nun-imouto type for your harem huh? She's real cutie right! I just wanna hug her and have her call me Onee-chan!" She let out a happy sigh, dreams of a little sister filling her mind.

"Oh, hey Issei, Gremory-san, Himejima-san." Naruto waved dejectedly.

"Ah… Are you sad because I haven't spoken to you all day? I'm so sorry but I've been super busy working at my new job!" Issei finally picked up on Naruto's mood.

"New Job?" Naruto looked up as she handed him a flyer. "All your wishes can be granted?" He narrowed his eyes, "Are… Are you having to sell your body because of that Fallen Angel? Is that the cost of sparing you? Has she enslaved you too Gremory-san?!"

"Eh?" Issei blinked while Akeno merely smiled and Rias chuckled. "Oh, it's not like that at all! See Devils must answer wishes as a job. Apparently when I get a familiar, they'll do it for me when they can."

"…Eh?" Naruto blinked. "Devil? Familiar?"

"Sona-chan said you were surprisingly uninformed." Rias smiled. "Yes, in order to save Issei I had to reincarnate her as a devil, as a member of my peerage."

"You saved Issei?" Naruto grasped her hands. "Thank you… Thank you for doing what I couldn't." He lowered his head in shame.

"Ara ara, how bold! Seizing the Club President's hands then directly staring at her breasts?" Akeno covered her mouth in mock shock.

"Eh?" Naruto opened his eyes and blushed red, "I… I didn't mean to!" He squeaked.

"R-Right," Rias smiled, feeling a soft burning in her cheeks. When he had held her hands and looked at her so passionately, she had thought he was going to confess to her. She was no stranger to confessions but the sheer emotion in Naruto stirred her heart. "Don't worry about Issei-chan. She will be able to reject any requests she is uncomfortable with." Recovering herself, Rias smiled widely to reassure Naruto.

"So, my virginity will be yours to take!" Issei added helpfully.

"I imagine someone who enjoys being beat up like Uzumaki-san probably would want your virginity to be stolen before his eyes." Akeno tilted her head with a sly smile. "It fits his apparent love of being utterly defeated."

"I don't have that sort of fetish!" Naruto countered angrily.

"That's a relief!" Issei let out a happy sigh, "I don't think I could give my first time to just anyone!"

"How long have you known Uzumaki-san?" Akeno asked.

"A week!" Issei beamed. "Ah but I know Naruto as a Harem protag will take a bit of time before he actually makes a move. It's the M.O. for his character type. By then I am sure we will be madly in love with each other, but don't worry. I'm happy to share him!"

"I'll keep that in mind," Akeno smiled at Naruto who felt years being shaved off his life.

"I… I owe you an apology, Uzumaki-san." Rias bowed her head, derailing the conversation.

"Buchou?" Akeno blinked in surprise.

"When we came across Issei-chan I… I was certain you were responsible or played a part. I am sorry." She lifted her head to look at Naruto and he could see genuine regret in her eyes.

"It's fine," Naruto sighed. "I… Well … I kind of suspected Himejima-san of being a Fallen Angel manipulating Issei so I'm not exactly innocent in that regard."

"Fallen Angel?" Akeno had a strange look on her face.

"Yeah, you sort of feel like Raynare or Yuuma, one of the two angels that attacked us." Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

"Really? They seem totally different to me. Akeno-san is a Onee-san type with slight sadistic undertones where as Yuuma…" There was a shadow of discomfort that flickered across Issei's face. "I guess she's just a… well…"

"Bitch?" Naruto suggested, earning a cough that could have been a hasty attempt to cover up a laugh from Rias.

"I just wonder what happened to make her like that? I mean someone doesn't become so mean without a reason, right?" Issei looked at Naruto, as if expecting him to have an answer. Before he could think of a response though, the Gremory heiress gave her own opinion.

"Some people are just like that," Rias shook her head. "But you don't need to worry about her. She wouldn't dare make a move on you now. Uzumaki-san however…"

"I'll be fine," He smiled reassuringly, "I'm not just going to be sat on my ass, waiting for stuff to go wrong."

"Oh? Some Main Character Training Montage?" Issei's eyes sparkled. "Trying to unlock a secret power?"

"Sort of?" Naruto laughed.

"Well while you're doing that, I'll work really hard!" Issei waved the flyer again. "Here take one! When you need me, you can use your blood to summon me!"

"And you'll appear right away?" Naruto blinked.

"Well no… I haven't learned that, so I'd have to get a bicycle and ride to your house, but I'd know exactly where you were!" Issei grinned. "So, no matter when, feel free to summon me! Together we can kick the ass of any problem that arrives with your Main character training and my job training!"

"I'll keep that in mind," Naruto nodded and waved goodbye as he left the bench. He paused as he walked, sensing unfriendly eyes on him, but the moment he looked around to try and spot whoever was responsible, the sensation left.

Feeling unnerved, Naruto made a point to pick up his pace and headed back to Jiraiya's house.

* * *

"Ah…" Issei let out a tired sigh as she laid down in the club house for the Occult Club. "Work is tiring."

"You did a good job today," Rias smiled softly as Koneko walked over to Issei to offer her a slice of cake, which the girl accepted eagerly, although Koneko had to dodge a clumsy hug attempt and politely decline Issei's offers to call her 'Onee-san'.

"Still… I was kind of expecting at least one person to make some sort of Ecchi request." Issei paused between bites of cake, "I guess my view of people is just a little skewed."

"It's more that we are… selective with who we give our flyers too," Rias smiled. "Plus, when they see that you have a right to decline their requests, people tend to temper what they ask for." She adjusted the glasses that she was wearing as she worked. Issei had asked what she was doing but Rias only responded with important Devil documentation. When she wore the glasses, she looked like a sexy secretary and Issei took a sly picture to send to Naruto. The pervy brunette imagined he would appreciate the image.

"Did you have any interesting jobs Issei-chan?" Akeno asked as she placed a cup of tea on Rias's desk.

"Nothing really," Issei put the empty plate on the small table next to the couch she had been sprawled across and brushed the crumbs from her uniform. "An old woman wanted someone to massage her shoulders and there was a kid who wanted some help beating a computer game. I'm surprised they were willing to summon a devil to deal with those things though."

"This area has been under the… influence of the Sitri clan for some time," Rias chuckled. "Those in the know are more prevalent in this area than others."

"So, do you know the president then?" Issei asked curiously.

"She is an old friend of mine," The red haired Gremory heiress nodded softly as she took a genteel sip from her cup, before continuing her work. "She is reliable and a hard worker with a good peerage."

"Do you think you could add Naruto to your peerage?" Issei asked.

"Adding a member to a peerage is an important and almost irreversible decision, not something to be taken lightly," Akeno gently chastised the eager brunette. "Rias-sama has only a few pieces that she can spend and to use them on someone like him…"

"Oh? Don't you like him?" Issei tilted her head. "Is this because he called you a fallen angel?"

"No, although that was surprising." The black-haired beauty stared into space. "He is… an anomaly."

"Anomaly?" Issei repeated.

"What Akeno is trying to say is he is neither a devil nor an angel. There are too many mysteries surrounding who he is and what his powers are. I'm sorry but I have no plans to recruit him just yet." There was an apologetic smile from the 'King' of the peerage.

"Could I get a peerage and recruit him then?"

"Only high-class devils get one," Rias smiled, "But it isn't impossible for you to reach that tier. Although it will take a long time and a lot of hard work."

"Well I'd best start training then!" Issei suddenly declared.

Before anyone could respond there was a knock at the door and in walked an anhydrous youth. The uniform they were wearing looked more like a boy's outfit, with trousers and a tie in blace of the bow and skirt.

"Ah Kiba-kun," Rias smiled, "I trust everything went well?"

"Indeed, Rias-sama," Kiba bowed his head, "The rogue devils have been dealt with. There are a few splinter groups that I have managed to locate." He pulled a small notepad from his pocket and handed it to his King, who merely tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"Tomorrow I want you to take Issei and Koneko-chan to the first of these locations. It will serve as some combat practice. Until then feel free to take it easy. I appreciate your hard work."

"Thank you, Rias-sama." There was a soft bow of his head.

"It is time for club to end," Rias closed her book and removed her glasses, a tired expression marring her beautiful face. "I will see you all tomorrow. Be careful on your travels, apparently the same Fallen Angel group that attacked Issei-chan is still operating in the area. Sitri-san says she is monitoring the situation and has made plans to deal with it before it becomes a problem we can't ignore. Still, it wouldn't hurt to be careful, Kiba-kun, could you escort Issei-chan home?"

"Of course," Kiba smiled pleasantly at the brunette.

"Ah, you don't have to do that for me," Issei laughed weakly.

"Nonsense, we are members of the same peerage. It is only natural for us to help each other out."

"Well, if you insist…" Issei got out of her seat and bowed her head. "Thank you for your instruction Gremory-sempai, Himejima-sempai! I'm heading out!" With a coy salute she left the clubhouse, followed by Kiba. The two walked down the streets in an awkward silence.

"S-So…" Issei coughed awkwardly. "How did you end up in Gremory-san's peerage? Were you nearly killed like I was? Ah sorry… that was probably a bad question to ask…"

"I was… Not entirely living I suppose you could say," the anhydrous youth nodded. "Gremory-san saved me from a dark fate and for her, I shall be a sword to cut down all who wish her harm."

"Hmm… That's no good!"

"Pardon?" Kiba blinked.

"If you go all white knight, that's gonna make it harder for Naruto-kun to make Rias-sempai fall for him!" Issei crossed her arms.

"…I don't follow."

"Look, if she is used to having a Prince-type like you around, that means Naruto's gotta be like a…. a king type or something to trump you and win her heart!"

"I assure you my affection for Gremory-sama is familial at best." Kiba wasn't entirely sure how to deal with the sulking Issei.

"I have big plans but for them all to work Naruto-kun has to win over all the heroines!" Issei declared. "And don't think you can win me over with that whole prince routine either! I prefer my MCs to be a little rough around the edges but a heart of gold! You can't trick me."

"I… I will keep that in mind," Kiba smiled weakly. "If I may ask you a question?"

"Go on… But I'm prepared for any tricks to try and make me fall in love with you!"

"Why are you so… interesting in Uzumaki-san? You have barely known him a week, correct?"

"It's kinda hard to explain it… It's just after our first conversation I got this feeling, right? I could tell that he was the guy I've been waiting for."

"I apologise for this next question, but did you not believe that the fallen Angel 'Yuuma' was a good friend to have as well?"

"That's completely different!" Issei rounded angrily on Kiba who took a step back. "Yuuma was using some weird trickery to fool me!"

"Can you guarantee that Uzumaki-san is not doing the same?" Kiba sighed, "As I said, I am Rias-sama's sword. I will strike down any threats to her before they have time to endanger her."

"He's not a threat! He could be a really important ally!"

"… I apologise I have overstepped my boundaries." The knight bowed his head softly, "The degree of your interest in a stranger seemed suspicious so I was concerned he was using some sort of magic to influence you; however, your feelings are definitely free from foreign manipulation. I pray you forgive me."

"If you promise not to try and seduce any future harem members from Naruto and me, I will consider it," Issei remarked sulkily as she walked up to the door of her house, Kiba stood watching her.

"I give you my word, I have no interest in love."

"Eh?" Issei paused as she opened the door.

"A weapon such as myself has no need of such feelings, I exist only to slay my enemies. Romance and the like are something that I have no need of nor desire for, so you can sleep easy." Kiba bowed his head and left, leaving a confused Issei at her door.

* * *

Much to Naruto's surprise, Jiraiya was waiting for him in the garden of the Fallen Angel's house. The old pervert hurriedly scurried him inside the house, glancing at an ornate pocket watch every few seconds until they were both in the house and all the seals had been drawn again.

"Is everything alright?" Naruto asked.

"What? Oh yes! Everything's fine, absolutely nothing to worry about!" The Fallen Angel laughed boisterously. "S-So, how's your day been?"

"… I think I've found someone who is prepared to help me out," Naruto replied bluntly. "A devil who is the heriess of the Sitri clan apparently."

"Wait, Sitri Sona?" There was a brief look of confusion, "She is here too? I mean I knew the Gremory Heiress was at the school but to think the Sitri clan's heiress is as well. I know this is Sitri territory but still... This place sure is popular with the high ranking devils."

"You're not kidding." Naruto nodded and started to head to his room. "I'm going to go to sleep."

"Now hold on just a second," Jiraiya grabbed Naruto's arm and steered him to the living room. "Weren't you asking me to train you earlier?"

"Well yes but…"

"But nothing! The almighty Jiraiya-sama will turn you from a weak scrawny bottom dweller into an Apex predator!" He posed dramatically but only earned a deadpan glare from Naruto. Coughing awkwardly, he tried to recover his enthusiasm, "First things first… I have some weights to help build you muscle mass, but not just any weights… This are special seals that apply the effect to your entire body and can be active all the time!"

"The Sitri heiress already put some on me." Naruto yawned, "Apparently it's using the leaking energy from the seals on me to power it as well."

"Oh…" Jiraiya faltered. "W-Well did she put a spirit drain on you?"

"A what?"

"Ahah!" Jiraiya smirked. "Well much like your muscles, your spirit or magical powers also need training. A Spirit drain constantly drains your magic and allows you to build up your magic 'muscles' as it were, improving your ability to regenerate your magical energy. Admittedly these are banned in the three factions seeing if you screw up, they will kill you, but I totally know what I am doing! I watched an entire two-hour PrayTube video on the subject!"

"… There's a few things I want to comment about with what you just said." Naruto rubbed his forehead tiredly.

"You have a fairly large amount of magic, but your mana recovery is quite slow seeing as up until recently you didn't use it. This will help you play catch up and by the time you have to save Asia comes you should actually be able to put up a good fight." Jiraiya grinned at his young apprentice, who merely groaned in resignation.

"And you are sure that I won't die? It won't mess with the other seals on me."

"…I'm fairly sure it will be fine," Jiraiya responded after a pause that went on longer than Naruto was happy with. "But if you want to be battle ready before Asia's execution you don't have much of a choice."

Against his better judgement, Naruto took off his shirt as Jiraiya prepared the materials to draw the seal.

"So…" Jiraiya remarked as he started mixing ink and various strange ingredients. "How goes your magical training?"

"… I can create solid magical clones now but that's it."

"Wait, you actually can cast that spell?!" Jiraiya blinked. _'Could this kid be some sort of prodigy?! That was a high-level spell he learnt. Or maybe it is his mother's blood in him…'_ "W-well I suppose you were a little slower than I was expecting but for someone with your lack of magical experience I suppose that was decent enough progress." He coughed awkwardly.

"Unfortunately, they aren't much use in fighting as they have little physical impact." Naruto sighed.

"What are you talking about? They are clones of you. They can do everything you can do. Oh, I get it!" The fallen angel suddenly laughed boisterously, "You don't know how to channel your… otherworldly energies yet right? The only reason you can use the divine punch is because your left arm is leaking divine energy constantly."

"But I can create clones! Surely that proves that I can channel my magic just fine! Plus, I was able to force the energy out of me in an attack!"

"Human magic uses 'Neutral' magic with is just energy that you can manipulate with effort. Divine and Demonic energy have wills of their own which makes them harder to use for someone with souls like you. What you did was less controlling it and opening a dam and hoping for the best. I'd wager you took some damage yourself from that manoeuvre."

"Souls like me?" Naruto quickly tried to change the subject, although the snort from Jiraiya showed his attempt wasn't unnoticed.

"Yeah, you have two souls remember. One appears human and the other… Well I can't place it to be honest. I'll assume this is your 'Nephilim soul'. Since you don't have an Angelic soul, you aren't programmed to use Divine magic and since you're not a devil you aren't programmed to use Demonic magic, regardless of the fact both energies are present with in you"

"So, can I not learn how to use them?"

"As a rough guide: self-sacrifice, duty and courage tend to help channel Divine and Greed, lust, desires etc. help to channel Demonic magic. When you learn how to control it better then you will be able to use those attacks with your clones as well. Basic magic is much easier to control than energy with a will such as Divine or Demonic magic, but far less potent. It's why human mages never compare to devils and the like without assistance from one of them."

"Seriously?" Naruto blinked. "Well teach me that then!"

"It isn't that easy to do though." Jiraiya stepped back and put the brush he had been using down. "Most of it is gut instinct. I can't teach you since I am an Angel so I can just use divine energy. Sorry kiddo but this is one thing you'll have to learn by yourself. It was why I was planning to let you figure your powers out in your own time, but it looks like I might not be able to do that anymore."

"What do you mean?" Naruto looked at Jiraiya.

"There is a slim chance that Azazel, the fallen angel head honcho, knows who you are." Jiraiya replied evasively.

"Slim chance? What makes you think that?"

"He may have met me today and said to tell you hi, by name I might add, and that he was looking forwards to seeing what the Cursed Child, that's what Heaven and Hell call you by the way, can do."

"Huh," Naruto rubbed his forehead. "I'd say that is bigger than a slim chance. Does… Does this affect my plans to save Asia? Do you think he'll interfere?"

"Nah," Jiraiya shook his head, "So long as nobody dies, I think I can sort out any problems with Azazel. Of course, if you want to back out then I totally understand."

"No…" Naruto looked at Jiraiya with piercing blue eyes. "I won't let Asia die."

Jiraiya blinked stupidly. Behind Naruto he could clearly see the shadow of his beloved student.

" _I won't let him die Jiraiya-sama. He's my son. I will never give up his location to Michael. Even if I have to die to protect him."_

"Jiraiya?" Naruto blinked as he noticed a tear roll down Jiraiya's face.

"Huh? Oh right," The old angel coughed awkwardly as he wiped away the stray tear. "I… I was just deep in thought. Anyway!" Jiraiya cleared his throat unconvincingly. "How'd you like to learn some basic offensive spells? I can't help you with your divine and demonic powers but I sure as hell can teach you some basic firepower spells. Plus, the additional mana drain from using spells with the drain on you will help build your magical capacity and magical (and possibly as a result physical) regeneration speed."

"Do I have to read another book? I've been given some homework from Sitri-san as well." Naruto's shoulders drooped.

"Nah," Jiraiya smiled warmly. "Just this once the almighty Jiraiya will help you out." _'He is definitely your son, my foolish pupil.'_ Jiraiya thought warmly as Naruto grinned at the prospect of learning some cool magic.

" _Promise me Jiraiya… If I should die… Protect my son."_

"Even if it kills me," Jiraiya mumbled softly under his breath.

"You say something?" Naruto looked at the old man with a confused expression.

"Nah," Jiraiya ruffled the boy's hair with a soft smile. "Just wondering to myself how I'm going to turn a no-talent hack like you into something worth noting."

"Bite me," Naruto angrily retorted. "I'll show you. Bring on your worst training and I'll master it!"

' _I don't doubt that you will, kiddo.'_


	3. 3: Teaching and Trickery

Naruto: Fate Breaker

A/N: Hello everybody! Sorry for the delay in releasing this. Life has been a bit crazy for me.

This is a bit of a slow chapter but from here on, both Naruto and Issei's powers will start to increase and we will make our way to the end of this introductory arc, after which I have a fair few ideas that could be pretty fun, but time will tell whether you readers agree with me.

Just a reminded that this story is using a canon of my own design, so some things will not make sense if you rely on the official DxD canon.

In regards to TLR I believe my writer's block is pretty much resovled so hopefully there will be an update in the next month or so.

Thanks to everyone who puts up with my lacklustre updating schedule, hopefully I will soon be able to speed up the rate at which I write chapters but househunting is not going well for me at the moment.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my ideas (And even then not all of them)

* * *

Chapter 3: Teaching and Trickery

 _In which everything totally goes as planned and trust is meaningless and a mysterious figure apologises for an unknown crime_

Naruto groaned as he tried to move. His entire body felt as if it were being crushed under some monstrous weight and he could halmost hear his bones groaning under the pressure. The weight was so heavy that he could barely draw air into his lungs, nor turn his head to see where he was or what was happening. He appeared to be alone, laying in some sort of wheat field that hid him from view.

As he stared at the clear blue sky ahead, he tried to recall what had happened, but his mind was foggy, and he couldn't seem to remember anything that would help him.

" _Ah… There you are poor Cursed Child. I thought I sensed your presence."_ Once again, the strange voice was felt rather than heard. _"I see… You are suffering, but do you recall what I first told you?"_

Despite his best efforts, Naruto was barely able to let out a choking noise, never mind actually speak. As he struggled to even make a noise to draw the attention of the mysterious figure, there was a rustling as the wheat parted and the faceless beauty entered Naruto's view, before kneeling beside him.

" _Yours is a path of struggles and strife."_ She stroked his cheek fondly. " _But if you persevere then all your dreams shall come to fruition. However, should the pain be too much, all you must do is cry out and you will be saved. If you persevere you might find the strength to save Argento Asia and many more besides, but if your pain is too much… Please ask to be saved. I take no pleasure from your pain and you have no obligation to save them. Please. If you truly suffer, do not bare it a moment longer. Please let me help you."_

Naruto couldn't help but notice a sensation in her 'words' that felt both sad and guilty. The pain that coursed through his body as it was subject to the heavy crushing force was truly excruciating and he opened his mouth to ask for help but was silenced by the beaming face of Asia. _'I… I can endure… If this is what it takes… I will become stronger… I won't let anyone down again!'_ He strained himself a and managed to roll over against the oppressive power holding him down, ignoring his limbs screaming out in pain.

It was a humiliating pain, one that made him feel weak and helpless and to his dismay, this was not the first time feeling such a thing. Even over the pain the wracked his body now, he could recall the cold rain lashing against him as he lay beaten and bruised as he his twin sisters looked on, tears streaking their faces. A dark burning filled Naruto as he tried to force himself to stand up.

" _Sweet child…"_ The other figure whispered soothing words as Naruto grimaced, struggling against the unyielding gravity pinning him. " _This pain you feel… The trials that you face here pale in comparison to what is to come. It is not too late to stop. Just say it's too much. I can take your pain away forever"_

"I… refuse…" Naruto choked out. "I… won't ever… again… be helpless…" His body screamed out in protest, but he ignored it. "I won't… let anyone else… suffer for my weakness!" He pushed himself up. "Never… again!" He swore as he struggled to his feet.

"… _Oh, sweet Cursed Child… May your soul never waver…"_

"ORA!" Naruto roared out before suddenly sitting upright, headbutting a concerned Jiraiya who suddenly leapt backwards, clutching his nose.

"What the hell gaki?!" Jiraiya rubbed his face. "What kinda dream were you having?"

"I… What?!" Naruto looked around. "I… I was having a weird dream… I think?" He looked around the room and found he was on the floor of the ground floor of Jiraiya's house. "Er… Did I oversleep again? The room's pretty bright." In fact, there was a soft golden glow filling the room that didn't seem to originate from any of the lights or, know that Naruto really looked, from the windows that still had all their curtains closed.

"W-well…" Jiraiya laughed. "You remember how I am such an awesome teacher?"

"What did you do?" Naruto deadpanned.

"Hehehe…" Jiraiya rubbed the back of his head. "Well you see Sealing is not so much an exact science as an art and different seals can interact with each other in a variety of ways and produce… unforeseen outcomes."

"What… Did… You… Do?" Naruto repeated himself, stressing every word.

"W-well you remember you mentioned the Sitri heiress put a seal on you that fed off the energy you were leaking?"

"Yes."

"And remember how I put a seal on you that siphoned away your energy to help promote its growth and regeneration capability?"

"Yes…"

"Well… Turns out the seal _I_ placed was kinda… feeding the other seal." Jiraiya laughed. "So, the gravity seal was super powered and crushing you and kinda made you fall through the roof," He pointed in the general direction of the roof and Naruto's eyes widened to see the hole. "Gave me quite a fright that did. Thought Azazel had decided to make a move or something."

"What the hell?!" Naruto blinked.

"Now the thing is… the seal I placed was supposed to fill up and gently release its energy slowly, so it was sipping away at your magical reserves but since it was powering the gravity seal, it was gulping it down like crazy… which in turn caused your magical reserves to rapidly grow which in turn put more pressure on your original seal and… well…"

"Jiraiya…" Naruto had a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"It was badly damaged when you suddenly forced a lot of energy through it and wrecked it." Jiraiya rubbed the back of his head. "That glow is you radiating the excess energy from your body. It should fade as your body sorts itself out… In a week or three."

"A week or three?" Naruto's eyebrow twitched. "I came here to stop my arm glowing blue and now you are telling me you turned me into a golden glow stick?!"

"Well when you phrase it like that everything sounds bad," Jiraiya responded sulkily. "I prefer to think of it as achieving my objective."

"Which was?" Naruto rubbed his forehead.

"Well… The seal worked in the result, if not by the expected method, and massively boosted your magical regeneration in a short period of time. Admittedly the loss of the seal that hides you from the other factions is a bit of a blow, but I jump started your magical training. Your reserves that had been sat idle have been fully revved up and ready for combat. In one night, you got the raw magical regeneration training of an entire year. What's to complain about?"

"How about the fact I apparently glow bright yellow!"

"I'd call it more golden honestly."

"WHAT DOES IT MATTER ABOUT THE COLOUR!? How am I going to explain this to anyone who asks?"

"Well… If anyone at school asks say you're a super saiyan."

"Do you think that's funny?!" Naruto retorted.

"Well you are blonde and blue eyed…" Jiraiya shrugged, "Plus only magical attuned people will be able to see your glow anyway."

"Didn't you say that if Heaven or Hell sensed me, they'd try and kill me and that the seal you placed on me was the only thing protecting me?"

"Kid," Jiraiya smiled warmly. "Don't worry about it. I have a plan."

"Oh…" Naruto calmed down.

"All you have to do is never leave my house until I resolve the issue." Jiraiya gave a thumbs up, which withered in the cold look on Naruto's face. "Look gaki, I can sorta do a quick fix that should see you for a few days so you can still have your training sessions with the Sitri heiress, but I have to warn you about some of the… more dangerous aspects of being a Nephilim that the seal sought to suppress."

"Go on." Naruto frowned.

"…What do you remember about what I told you about the Nephilim?"

"That it killed the creator and was generally a big deal." Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

"A little basic but I guess you're not wrong." Jiraiya begrudgingly accepted the answer. "Heaven and Hell tend to refer to it as The Beast. It has such power that completely sealing it was impossible, but they managed to seal away its core. Unfortunately, the pieces that were unsealed gained a limited sort of sentience and while nowhere near as difficult to defeat as the original, they are a potent threat that none of the three armies were prepared to face. Fortunately, these fragments lacked the ability to effectively utilise their magic so are trapped in Purgatory, but they share many traits with their progenitor: Increased magical reserves, increased magical resistance, insane regeneration and worst of all the Devour ability."

"Devour?" Naruto blinked.

"Yeah… See these fragments of the Nephilim, which we commonly call Beastkin, know they aren't whole so they will try and devour anything to try and fill the void within themselves. Their 'Devour' ability allows them to break down anything into magical particles and absorb them, adding their power to its own."

"Then couldn't they just absorb each other and become whole again?" Naruto asked.

"Fortunately, not." Jiraiya shook his head. "Beast-kin can only grow so powerful before entering a hibernation state and sprouting several weak Beastkin, so the net power of all Beast-kin never increases, only dwindles away." He waved his hand, "But that's not the important part. Beast-kin target their own above all else, maybe as they recognise that they are all shattered pieces of the main beast and want to reunite. It is a mindless hunger that overtakes them and makes them devour anything with even the slightest trace of magic."

"So, I might turn into a mindless monster?"

"No of course not. The Beast-kin don't have souls for a start, hence their limited intelligence and instinctive behaviours. However, they may target you as a priority, as you have the same 'feel' as them. In fact, you might even attract them to you."

"That doesn't sound good."

"Like I said, they are all trapped in purgatory so I wouldn't worry too much. I would be more concerned that the original Nephilim had the devour ability as well so it isn't impossible that without your seal you may develop a similar power. Just… try not to eat anyone if you start feeling hungry alright." Jiraiya's tone was light but his eyes betrayed his true concern.

"Wait…" Naruto scowled. "I was attacked by someone who stole my energy and he said something about wanting to eat me."

"Shit," Jiraiya paled, "I guess he must have stolen the energy of your second soul, the one I believe to be your Nephilim side. Did he undergo any physical transformations?"

"Yeah… He went all white and scaly."

"Beastification…" Jiraiya shivered.

"So… Are you gonna explain what the hell that is to me or…?" Naruto crossed his arms.

"A bad thing heaven was looking into as an emergency plan to deal with the Nephilim. It was… cruel but ultimately provided a short-lived monster that could easily be replaced. The details are unimportant, seeing as all records of it should have been destroyed but if there is a chance any of the records survived and the Sitri heiress got a hold of them, she might be able to hazard a guess as to what you are and… I'll be honest those reports won't make you look good."

"I see." Naruto frowned. "Well… What can I do about it?"

"Not a whole lot really," Jiraiya shrugged. "If the records exist still, I have no idea where they might be and I'm pretty sure that all the angels involved fell and died at some point, so I'd say just focus on making it clear you aren't a hungry monster out to devour and destroy everything."

"I'll try and keep that in mind," Naruto deadpanned.

"Besides that, get strong enough that it doesn't really matter what people think? I can think of a few more seals if you…"

"No thank you," Naruto shook his head venomously. "You already turned me into a glowing beacon, I'd hate to see what the next step would be."

"Kids these days," Jiraiya grumbled. "Well I guess I'll get to work on designing your new suppression seal since apparently going Super Saiyan isn't cool anymore."

Naruto shot Jiraiya a scowl, but the perverted fallen angel was walking away, mumbling to himself. Deciding to leave his 'mentor' to his mumblings, the blonde youth glanced at a clock and realised it was still 2 am, yet he felt wide awake and decided to read the book that Sona had given him. Fortunately, Jiraiya had seen the book and warned him in advance that the book was written in the Western style of left to right, so there wasn't going to be a repeat of his first magical training book experience.

Heading up to his room (and avoiding the giant hole in the centre of the room), Naruto sat down on a pile of cushions and opened the thick tome. The first page had several important looking crests and portraits, none of which were familiar to Naruto although one of the smaller portraits caught his attention, although he didn't know why. It appeared to show a woman with two hair licks that almost looked like fox ears sprouting from her hair and Naruto got the odd sensation that he had seen her before, but the book didn't say who she was, as if expecting the reader to already know. He made a mental note to check with Sona next time he saw her.

The next page should have been blank, Naruto assumed, as the writing on it was different from the text in the rest of the book. For one thing it was handwritten in a bright pink ink with sparkles in it.

'Hey So-tan!

I can't believe my lil' sister is already starting her training! Big sis is cheering you on! I left little helpful notes for you so don't give up! Fight on and break the engagement!

Love-

Sera-chan *heart*'

"Huh, wonder what all this is about," Naruto frowned. "Break the engagement?" Deciding it wasn't something he could do much about now, he turned the page and stared blankly at a wall of text that made his head hurt just looking at it. At the bottom was another note from 'Sera-chan'.

'So-tan!

This bit is really boring but basically means that we devils are creatures of greed and sin since that was how we were made by the Creator. Really boring and not much use to be honest, plus I'll bet that my super smart lil' sister is already aware of all the info in this bit. Skip to page 68 for the good stuff!

Sera-chan *heart*'

"Huh, page 68 huh…" Naruto flicked to the page and blinked. It was another page that should have been blank but this time there was a crudely drawn picture of a small girl hugging a taller girl with plenty of love hearts surrounding it with the caption 'So-tan and Sera-chan 3'. On page 69 was a brief introduction to manipulating energy, at least that was what the title said but after ten pages of 'introduction' Naruto felt his eyes beginning to slip and instead decided to focus on the pink notes, which while dismissive of the topics and generally just telling this 'So-tan' how much they loved them, summarised the concepts in terms even Naruto, a complete novice to the world of magic, could understand.

"I don't know who you are Sera-chan, but you are making this a lot easier, so thank you." Naruto muttered a brief prayer before diving headfirst into the first practical exercise.

 _Elsewhere_

"Oh hoh?" A cheerful young voice suddenly cried out. "I feel like someone complimented me!" The owner of the voice had her hair in twin tails that danced in time with her energetic movements. "Maybe So-tan is thinking about me?" She looked around the room at the three other inhabitants, all who were sat at desks surrounding a small sphere that was floating in the centre of the room.

"I don't see how that relates to the current issue, Serafall-san," A calm voice interrupted the girl, and she turned to pout at a bald man who was currently stroking his goatee. He was one of the Four Great Satans, Falbium Asmodeus, current head of Military Affairs.

"Bah! I don't wanna hear anything from a goatee baldy, unloved loser!" The now named Serafall pouted as she sat down on a desk, adjusting the magical girl attire she was wearing, looking nothing like the Satan in charge of Foreign Affairs she was supposed to be.

"Now, now," A red haired male rubbed his forehead. "The sooner we finish this the sooner we can all get back to our families and loved ones." The older brother of Rias paused fondly at the thought of his wife and son waiting for him back home. Plus, he had been meaning to call Rias to see how she was but with all this Satan work he was finding it hard to make the time and given how urgent Falbium had sounded when requesting this meeting, he suspected he would be busy for some time.

"Thank you, Sirzechs-san," Falbium nodded at the third member before turning to the fourth, "We need to get to the bottom of this."

"Yeah, I guess," The fourth member waved dismissively. He was a youthful looking male who could be described as handsome, although his entire body radiated a complete lack of interest in the current situation. This was the creator of the evil pieces and Satan in charge of the Technological Department, Ajuka Beelzebub.

"I am glad we are agreed," Falbium nodded and stood up, tapping the sphere and causing a projection of Earth to appear with a flashing red dot. "As you can see, several days ago we got an unusual power spike from an area in Japan. Given as the area of this spike was nowhere near any factions area of operations, I dispatched some scouts, but they found nothing, so I figured it was just some strange hiccup on the machine."

"Those machines are checked and calibrated frequently," Ajuka shook his head. "If they saw a spike then there was something there."

"As of this moment, our scouts are yet to find anything of interest." Falbium retorted.

"Well maybe they should look a bit harder?" Ajuka scowled. "Trust me, I checked the machines myself personally only a few days ago. The only observation fields that needed any work were the ones observing purgatory and Western Europe."

"Western Europe?" Sirzechs glanced at his friend.

"Bloody Mages are playing around with things they don't understand again. Caused a lot of background magical radiation that is sending our scanners a bit wild. I should be dealing with that right now other than sitting here but apparently Baldy Goatee found something that he just had to tell us all in person." Ajuka sighed.

"I have a name you know," Falbium sighed as he stroked his goatee, "But it isn't so much what I found that is the reason for the meeting. As I said we are yet to find anything but there must have been something."

"What makes you so sure?" Sirzech looked at the projected Earth with a soft frown.

"Gabriel is apparently taking over the Angel's scouting forces on Earth."

"What?!" Ajuka suddenly shot upright. "Does Heaven know something we don't?"

"Gabriel has not been involved in any military affairs since… well… you know…." Sirzechs fidgeted awkwardly. "Are the seals all holding?"

"As well as can be expected," Ajuka nodded. "I… I wasn't going to say anything as it didn't seem important, but it does appear as if the number of beast-kin is dwindling. They tend to cluster due to their nature but from what readings we are getting from Purgatory, it looks like they are going somewhere else."

"And you didn't think this worth noting?" Falbium blinked.

"Well… I figured we'd know if they were entering Earth or Hell and since that wasn't the case, I was hoping to have an answer before I brought it to your attention." Ajuka shrugged. "As far as we can tell they are just vanishing. It _could_ be that the Beast-kin are dying out, but I didn't want to get everyone's hopes up without proof."

"Do you believe this could be related?" The former heir of the Gremory clan looked at the other Satans.

"The spike could have been a result of either Angels or Fallen Angels drawing Beast-kin to Earth but screwing up their attempts to hide it." Falbium suggested, stroking his goatee as he spoke.

"Why would angels or fallen want to bring a beast-kin to Earth? Sirzech-chan, Goady is talking crazy." Serafall whined.

"Goady?" Falbium blinked.

"Goatee Baldy." The magical girl Satan responded instantly.

"Don't shorten it! In fact, don't call me it at all!" The head of Military affairs whined.

"He might be onto something… I do remember hearing something about experiments with the Beast's cells that Heaven performed. Maybe someone got a hold of that research and they are planning to do something?" Ajuka scowled. "If Heaven or the Fallen are planning something, we need to be prepared." Any trace of his early reluctance to be here was now gone. "I'll have my teams work on overhauling our scanners with a few experimental upgrades I was thinking about installing but never got around to. If Heaven or the Fallen are up to something, we'll find out."

"Oh, that reminds me," Serafall clapped her hands. "I got a request for an Earth visit that I approved from Gabriel, since she was going to be near our territory at Kuoh… Hey… You don't think So-tan could be in danger, do you?"

"No…" Sirzechs shook his head. "Gabriel is not one for such methods, although her presence does raise questions, especially considering her recent re-involvement with military matters. It might be her just re-familiarising herself with the agents in the area but… it wouldn't hurt to mention to our forces at Kuoh to keep an eye on things."

"Oh! I'll got tell So-tan right away!" Serafall stood up. "So… are we done here?"

"I guess so," Sirzechs nodded. "Ajuka, let us know the instant you find anything odd."

"Will do," Ajuka nodded.

"Goa… I mean Falbium, can you divert some of our forces to the area to keep an eye on things?"

"Of course." Falbium pretended not to notice the fact SIrzechs almost called him Goatee or Goady.

"And as for you Serafall…"

"I'll personally protect So-tan!" The young girl punched the air dramatically.

"You have duties to attend to. Just pass on the message then return." Falbium scowled at the sulking Leviathan.

"This is why you are alone you unloved Goady!" Serafall stuck her tongue out childishly before leaving with a bright grin on her face. She just couldn't wait to see her sister and her cute peerage members. Sona had mentioned finding something interesting and Serafall was curious as to what had gotten her cute little So-tan's attention.

There was a general murmur of goodbyes and the room was suddenly empty, at least it appeared to be.

"So… The Satans are starting to move too? How very interesting… It is too early for them to meet with the Cursed Child though. Maybe the Enforcers of His Last Will might be persuaded to… hinder Hell's actions: he is a vital a component in the plan to awaken the Beast after all …" There was a hint of annoyance in an otherwise silken voice and without anyone even knowing there was a fifth person present at the meeting, the mysterious figure vanished.

 _Konoha Academy, Unusued Classroom_

"And if there are no more questions, let us end this meeting," Mito Uzumaki gazed as the gathered students around her. They were currently in a classroom that the school council borrowed to house their meetings and discussions. Unlike Kuoh's dedicated facilities, Konoha Academy could only repurpose rooms for other uses.

It was a mystery to many of the gathered students why their president even came to such a small, poorly funded school when with her grades she could easily get into any school. Her calm, refined beauty was one that you'd expect from some private noble school, not a rough and tumble private school like this.

The way she walked around with an air of dignity, yet her voice carried such power that you felt compelled to listen and follow her, clearly this girl would become a great leader of people in the future, which made it all the more confusing why such a gifted girl was currently wearing the Konoha High uniform. An itchy looking green blazer over a white shirt with a dark green bow around her neck. The skirt she was wearing fell to her knees, where a pair of long white socks started all the way down to some rather plain footwear.

Yet even with such a plain, unappealing outfit, she still seemed to radiate a pure beauty that had resulted in many a boy asking her out, only to be turned down as she had no time for romantic endeavours, or at least that's what she told them. It didn't take long for the love letters to dry up when it became clear she was disinterested in love, which was good for Mito. She didn't want any misunderstandings to arise and cause her beloved Naruto any concerns about her loyalty to him, unlike that idiot Tsunade who was still receiving many love letters that clearly showed she was not devoted to Naruto as she had no made it clear to others that they had no chance. Now maybe a few of these were sent by Mito under false names just to exaggerate to Naruto how unfaithful Tsunade was, but sometimes these things needed helping along.

There was a general murmur of assent from the gathered students as they rubbed the sleep from their eyes. Mito had scheduled this meeting before classes for a specific reason, but she didn't need the council to know about that.

"Excellent," Mito smiled softly and organised the papers on her desk. "In which case I will conclude this meeting early. I appreciate you all coming in before homeroom so we can get started on this work as soon as possible. I believe we can all make this school a better place."

"Thank you, president," The gathered council applauded her before leaving the classroom.

Mito internally sighed. Her current efforts to find out where her brother had gone had all been resounding failures. Her parents were being strangely tight lipped about the whole situation and all that she knew is that he was staying with the strange 'uncle' Jiraiya character that showed up occasionally. She was worried what such a suspicious individual would do with her beloved brother but resigned herself to accepting there was little she could do about it. Despite the best efforts of her and the IT Club, she had failed to even find a whiff of the man's presence online.

Maybe if she had gone to one of the many gifted schools that had offered her a scholarship, she could have had more luck, but at the time of her enrolment her main goal was going to her brother's school. Everything else, even her education, was secondary.

Leaving the classroom, Mito walked through the hallways of the school and what looked like a meandering path to the precious few students that were in this early, but as always it was a calculated path deliberately designed to look like aimless wandering to any observers. Should anyone know her deliberate destination, it would ruin her image at the school and the love letters might start again.

On her 'aimless walk' she came across a small room that had been repurposed into a club room for one of the smaller, yet most popular clubs in this school: The fortune telling club. Fortunately, this early there would be no-one here, but since Mito had arranged a discussion with the club's president, said student would be inside waiting for her.

"Good morning," Mito remarked as she stepped into the spacious cabinet. There was barely enough room for the large table that sat in the centre, adorned with various occult looking items. Sat on the table, looking half-asleep was a young blonde girl who was wearing the standard uniform, although with buttons strategically not fastened in order to reveal a little more flesh than was probably acceptable. Mito would have commented but she felt that she had more pressing matters to attend with.

"Morning pres." A tied blonde girl yawned. This student was Yamanaka Ino, self-styled love expert and president of the Fortune Telling club. "Is there are problem that needed me in this early?"

"I was just checking over your budget requests, unfortunately I am unable to accept your request for a mini-fridge to store drinks in." Mito remarked bluntly.

"Oh?" Ino grinned. "How about I throw in a free palm reading? My love fortunes are 100% accurate!" She gestured to a seat next to the table.

"I have no desire to take part in your silly superstitious nonsense," Mito remarked, yet she sat down in the chair Ino had indicated. "However, if it makes you happy, go ahead."

"Right then," Ino told Mito's hand in her own, turning it over and tracing a finger along the lines of her skin, humming to herself. "Oh my?"

"Is there something wrong?" Mito raised an eyebrow.

"Well…" Ino bit her lip. "You don't care for love, right?"

"O-Of course not."

"Well then it's fine. Your fortune is… muddy."

"Muddy?"

Ino released her hand and nodded sagely. "Yes, you see… I can see that there is someone you love who is far away and beyond your reach currently and if I am reading the lines correctly, there is a deep secret that could drastically change your relationship."

"W-what kind of secret?" Mito asked, failing to hide her concern.

"One that changes everything," Ino remarked vaguely.

"R-really," Mito looked thoughtful. _'What could it be? Maybe… Maybe Nii-sama isn't actually my blood sibling and is really some sort of foreign noble who I was promised to at birth?! Could it be that! Is that why he left? To claim his inheritance and prepare for our wedding?!'_ Her cheeks slightly reddened at the thought, although compared to her usual pale and controlled appearance it was as obvious as a blazing siren in a library.

"This change… might not be a good one though."

"A bad change?" Mito froze. _'Like… Naruto has no interest in me because he is actually gay or worse… He likes Tsunade?! No! THAT IS NOT POSSIBLE!'_

Ino sat back with a soft smirk, as the 'unshakeable' president clearly struggled with her emotions. "But all is not lost."

"It isn't?"

"No… I foresee that such an outcome is not fixed. If you wish to avoid such a fate… you must give him space to truly realise how he feels."

"I… I see…" Mito frowned slightly. "That… That is what must be done… Not that I believe in such nonsense anyway." She stood up suddenly before pausing. "I… I might be able to make room in the budget for your request, but I require you to do something for me first."

"Doesn't the free reading count?" Ino pouted slightly.

"If my sister Tsunade should visit for a reading… Be sure to tell her something that would worry and hinder her pursuit of love."

"It goes against everything I believe in… but I would really like a mini fridge, so we have a deal," Ino smiled as the concerned president left. While the timing was different, it was at least once a week that the president would arrange these meetings. Half of the things on the table had been acquired by such previous 'meetings'.

As she started to imagine what drinks she would need to stock up on for her new mini fridge, the door to her clubroom opened again and the energetic twin sister of Mito popped her head in. While Mito was the 'hime' of the school, her sister was the sports star. Her boundless energy and cheer had won her no shortage of admirers and much like her twin, Tsunade had been scouted for better schools and yet she still came to this one. It did make Ino wonder what exactly was going on in their heads. Maybe the twins both wanted to go to the same school but Ino suspected it was something else.

"OH, hey Ino-chan? You're open early." Tsunade walked in with a wide grin and a faint misting of sweat on her brow. "That's awesome! Dad dropped me and Mito off together, so I was just running laps to kill time before school."

"The President wished to talk to me," Ino gestured to the seat where Tsunade eagerly plopped herself down.

"Did you remember our bargain?" Tsunade asked.

"Of course, I told her something that worried her and hindered her attempts to woo her suitor."

"Hehehe," Tsunade smirked. "My genius plan has no flaws! While Mito-nee is floundering, I'll use your genuine advice to swoop in and win the war! Oh right… here's the money for next week!" The younger sister handed a small roll of notes to Ino, who pocketed them. "So, you'll agree to give her fake readings and give me real ones for another week, right?"

"Of course. I assure you that this fortune is completely true and different to the fake fortune I told to your sister." Ino took the bouncy twin's hand in her own. "Now let me see… Oh…"

"What is it?! That sounds bad!"

"Well… It appears your love life fortune is muddy… I can see that there is someone you love who is far away and beyond your reach currently and if I am reading the lines correctly, there is a deep secret that could drastically change your relationship."

"W-w-w-what?! He could hate me or something? Or worse Mito could steal him from me?! Oh man this is bad! What do I do?!"

"Well… If you wish to avoid such a fate… you must give him space to truly realise how he feels."

"R-right!" Tsunade grasped her hand tightly. "Thank you so much Ino-chan! I won't lose!"

Ino merely smiled as the determined twin left the room. She felt a bit bad about playing the two twins like this, but she imagined she would feel a lot better when she had a fridge provided by the president full of drinks and snacks paid for by Tsunade. She'd start giving them honest fortunes after that.

Then again, there was this mini television that she wanted and there was this cute dress she had seen in a store so maybe she'd drag this out a bit longer…

 _Kuoh Academy, Secret Training Room_

Issei took a deep breath as she took in her surroundings. She was in a large marble room, with no visible entrances or exits bar the glowing runes in the centre of the room. She was wearing her school uniform, although it was damaged in several places and there were scrapes and bruises on her exposed flesh.

Trying to calm her racing heart, she looked around and tried to pinpoint her assailants. She couldn't see them, but knew they were hiding behind some of the pillars that decorated the otherwise empty room. Biting her lip, she cautiously advanced to the glowing circle. Rias had been clear that this training was more about her being able to sense and react to danger, than fighting back, but Issei wanted to impress Rias and also have something to brag about to Naruto. While her objective was supposed to be to reach the glowing circle at the centre of the room, Issei was determined to give a good showing of her skills. Unfortunately, she greatly underestimated just how powerful her fellow peerage members were.

As she took a step forwards her instincts screamed at her to leap backwards, which she did but unfortunately the resulting shockwave of the attack she had dodged still sent the young girl careering backwards and crashing through a pillar, which collapsed around her.

"How…" Issei winced as she stood up, "How can a small girl hit so hard?!"

"Rook." Was the blunt response as Koneko charged Issei.

"D-damn it!" Try as she might, Issei couldn't outrun the small neko and it took all she could to desperately dodge the powerful attacks.

"A Rook has largely increased physical characteristics, both strength and resilience are considerably boosted." Rias's voice sounded from the glowing circle. "Getting up close and personal with a peerage member bearing this rank is likely to go poorly."

"So I see," Issei remarked before yelping as Koneko leapt like a pinball, bouncing off of several pillars before finally lunging at the recently reincarnated devil from a blind spot, however once again Issei's instincts allowed her to evade the main attack, only to be blasted away by the shockwave.

"Annoying," Koneko remarked. "You don't seem to be taking this seriously."

"Boost!" Issei cried out, a crimson gauntlet appearing on her right arm as she quickly escaped from Koneko using the dust from the smaller devil's attack. Rias had personally tutored her on how to use her Sacred Gear, although she was only able to boost her skills ever so slightly.

No sooner has she lost Koneko than a blade narrowly missed her, cutting her hair slightly and Issei found herself facing off against Kiba.

"You look exhausted, if you feel you have reached your limit feel free to end the training session. I have no desire to see you injured and recognising your limits is also important." Kiba smiled softly.

"Shove your prince act!" Issei pointed at Kiba with her gauntleted fist. "Koneko's physical resistance is insane but you're not a Rook correct?"

"That is indeed correct," Kiba flourished their sword. "I am a Knight."

"So, you aren't as strong or tough as Koneko right?"

"It is true that a Rook tends to be harder wearing than a knight, but a knight is much more agile."

"Then all I have to do is land a hit, right?" With a grin Issei leapt forwards lunging wildly only for her strike to pass through Kiba and for her to crash into a pillar with several small cuts on her arms and legs.

"Unfortunately attacking my afterimage won't damage me," Kiba's voice was apologetic as they flicked small flecks of blood from their weapon. "Rias-sama set up this training to improve your ability to respond and evade danger. She never expected you to defeat us in a fight this early."

Issei chuckled slightly, as an idea came to her. "Well then… I guess I'll have to think of something to neutralise your advantage then."

"Oh?" Kiba seemed genuinely curious. "And how do you intend to do that?"

"Simple," Issei smirked. "Unlike Koneko, I should be able to hurt you if I can hit you. All I have to do is make it, so your agility is a non-issue!"

"True… If you can prevent me dodging, it is possible that by using your sacred gear you could harm me. However even with your Boost effect active, my agility is still far greater than yours."

"Boost!" Issei cried out as she punched the floor, sending debris and dust flying everywhere.

"I see…" Kiba's eyes widened. "Well… I suppose I don't but that was the plan wasn't it. You created a smoke screen to hide your movements and preventing me from being able to evade your attacks as I cannot see them. That is a good plan… unfortunately it won't work against me." Kiba lazily side stepped an attack from Issei. "Even if I can't see you, I can still sense your magical energy and your intent." Flipping the sword around in their hand, Kiba struck Issei with the flat of the blade, knocking her into the dust cloud before preparing for Issei's next attack.

"She's retreated." Koneko remarked as she stepped through the dust to look at Kiba, who merely sighed.

"Issei-chan has potential," Kiba frowned. "But she does need to realise that this isn't a game. Challenging stronger devils will result in her death. I can only hope she will realise this."

"She will learn when Akeno-sama starts her lessons." Was Koneko's blunt reply.

"Oh…" Kiba paled slightly. "Do you suspect Rias-sama told her to hold back?"

"Akeno-sama will do what she believes necessary to assist Rias-sama. If this means beating sense into Issei, I believe that is what she will do." Koneko seemed rather disinterested in the whole situation.

Kiba merely nodded. "Let's finish this training session, first shall we?" The knight turned to the rook, only to find the small neko had already disappeared. "Ah… I guess I should try and keep up."

Meanwhile Issei was running towards the glowing circle. Her initial plan to attack the peerage members and show her skills to Rias has not gone exactly as she had hoped. Still she felt like she put up a decent showing considering the difference in the levels of the other peerage members and herself.

There was an explosion as the marble pillar next to her crumbled and Koneko appeared from the dust, closely followed by a calmly smiling Kiba.

Issei crouched and prepared to defend herself, but there was little she could do, and it took all of her effort to evade the blur of blade strikes and the fierce punches of Koneko. Issei was too exhausted to think straight and all it took was a brief hesitation and Koneko landed a palm strike on her stomach, winding the already fatigued Issei who was helpless to defend herself against Kiba's sword, which now rested against her throat.

"That's enough." Rias walked amongst the debris as Kiba removed the blade from her neck and bowed in deference to Rias.

"My, my. Do you enjoy getting beaten up? You should have let me know~" Akeno flanked her King, looking bemused at the beaten and bruised Issei.

"I'm sorry to say you failed this training session," Rias sighed. "The whole point was for you to evade danger, not challenge Koneko and Kiba to fights."

"I… I wanted to impress you…" Issei couldn't help but feel bad when he saw the disappointed expression on Rias's face.

"I…" Rias started to speak until Akeno interrupted her.

"I will handle this." Akeno smiled before returning her gaze to Issei with a considerably less friendly expression. "Are you incapable of listening?"

"Eh?"

"Before the exercise, you were explicitly told that this wasn't a training fight. You were ordered to try and avoid combat as much as possible correct?"

"W-well yes but…"

"But nothing." Akeno scowled. "If Rias-sama gives you an order you should follow it. This isn't some school club where you can mess around. Rias-sama has a lot riding on all of us. This isn't a game and there are very real consequences for failure. Understood?"

"I… I understand."

"If this is too difficult for you, we can always replace you," Akeno continued.

"N-No!" Issei bowed her head. "I… I'm sorry. I will do better next time!"

"That's all I want," Rias smiled warmly at Issei, "Now go and get cleaned up and ready for school."

"H-Hai!" Issei saluted nervously before following Koneko and Kiba away.

"You didn't have to be that harsh," Rias glanced at Akeno, who merely smiled.

"She is still acting like this is a game or some Anime where everything works out. Even dying wasn't enough for her to realise the gravity of her situation. If you truly plan to send her on a mission tonight, she needs to realise that not following orders could get her killed." Akeno shook her head. "I imagine even my lecture won't have much effect, but someone has to be the mean one. There is too much at risk here."

"My issues should not cause you so much trouble," Rias faltered. "I'm sorry for this."

"Your troubles are our troubles," Akeno looked at Rias, "And never apologise. We all owe you everything and if we have to struggle a bit to see you smile happily, it is a price we are all willing to pay and I guess you'll just have to suck up and accept that."

Rias merely chuckled weakly as the two headed to the magical circle to leave this training area. "Do you think she'll be okay tonight?"

"Koneko and Kiba should be more than enough to deal with those rogue devils. Issei-chan should have hopefully had her eyes opened a bit and should be fine. If it makes you feel better, I too shall be in the area overseeing the operation. If things go poorly, I will intervene." The two stepped through the portal and found themselves in the school gym storage room, stepping out and continuing towards the club house. It was still early so other students were scarce.

"I see," Rias seemed considerably happier on that front. "And how is your investigation into Uzumaki-san coming along?"

"Oh?" Akeno tried to play innocent but Rias saw through the act. "Fine then… My investigations into Uzumaki Naruto have been inconclusive. He was raised by humans and has two human sisters. Apparently, he was adopted though so his true parentage is unknown. He lives in a heavily warded building, so I haven't been able to find out more. He is an enigma and I don't like that. I shall have to find time to ask him questions personally."

"I don't believe that he means us harm," Rias countered. "He seems like a nice enough person, besides Sona-chan gave him the all clear and is apparently helping him with the Fallen Angel situation, unofficially of course."

"Of course," Akeno responded nonchalantly. There was no way that a high-ranking devil would officially get involved with an operation against one of the other factions. "Still I hate mysteries." The queen scowled. "And something about Uzumaki Naruto is… different."

"I know what you mean," Rias nodded. "He has this feeling about him that makes me feel… different."

"…Ignoring your burgeoning puberty," Akeno looked away to stop herself laughing at Rias' indignant pout, "I just get the feeling something big is on its way and he's playing a part, whether willingly or otherwise."

"Speak of the devil," Rias nodded ahead, where a sheepish Naruto was stood, wearing his janitor's uniform and looking around. When he saw them, he nodded, which the duo took as an invitation to talk.

"Good morning Uzumaki-san." Akeno smiled.

"Naruto-san," Rias beamed at him, causing the blonde youth the rub the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Oh, hey there," Naruto laughed, "You're here early."

"We had some peerage things to deal with, we've training Issei for her first big job tonight." Rias remarked offhandedly, while Akeno mentally noted how easily she'd offered up the information.

"Oh? Nothing bad I hope," There was a hint of concern in Naruto's voice, that would have probably delighted Issei if she were around to hear it. Fortunately, the rest of the peerage was probably at the club house, having left a few minutes before Rias and Akeno.

"She should be fine. Just some rogue devils that need investigating."

"Rogue devils?" Naruto blinked.

"Essentially devils who are in this world but don't follow the rules that the Four Satans proposed. Usually this would fall to Sona-chan and her peerage as this is technically Sitri territory, but as thanks for letting me stay here, I help her out with these things. Plus, it is good battle experience for my peerage too."

"Battle?" Naruto blinked.

"Well yes, devils who live as they please tend to be a tad upset when someone shows up to tell them to stop it," There was a condescending air to Akeno's voice, but Naruto chose not to rise to the bait.

"Well, I hope it all goes well." Naruto smiled.

"Why are you stood around here anyway?" Akeno asked.

"I'm supposed to meet Maid-senpai here to start my work with her." Naruto frowned. "But she is sorta late. I wonder if she is having a smoke break again. She seems to smoke a lot, yet never smells of smoke. Must be some sorta maid trick. I imagine the staff smelling of cigarettes would tarnish the 'prim and proper' feel of this school."

"Well, we'll leave you to it." Akeno bowed her head and left, closely followed by Rias who gave a cheerful wave goodbye.

As he watched them go, Naruto couldn't help but admire them. Even if he thought Akeno's personality was… subpar, the two of them looked like princesses as they walked along the campus. He let out a sigh.

"Enjoying the view?" A familiar voice caused Naruto to tense up.

"Maid-senpai?" Naruto turned to face the unimpressed maid, whose black eyes were looking at him as if he were trash.

"It is against regulations to lust after students you know."

"I'm not lusting over students." Naruto deadpanned.

"There are enough rumours going around that you are in a relationship with the Vice-President, if such rumours persist it would be your job that is on the line. Personally, I welcome your future firing. My workload has tripled since you started."

"I'm not dating Tsubaki," The Nephilim sighed heavily.

"First name terms huh?" Maid-senpai scowled. "Well I don't care anyway. So long as it doesn't interfere in your work, and thus give me more work to deal with."

"I am sure it won't, since there is no relationship." Naruto assured her.

"Ah Uzumaki-san."

"… Shinra-san," Naruto turned to face the vice-president herself.

"The president requests your presence." Tsubaki glanced between the scowling maid and Naruto, who was shaking his head with a wry smile.

"I'm sure she does," The glare from Maid-senpai made it perfectly clear what she thought of the situation.

"I…" Naruto watched the angry maid leave before returning his attention to a confused Tsubaki.

"Did I interrupt something?"

"No… It's nothing. She just thinks we are dating apparently."

"… Oh." There was a quiet mumble from Tsubaki. "W-well that is preposterous! I mean… I'm an honour student and you are a janitor!"

"Hey! Apologise to janitors the world over!" Naruto retorted. "Besides you're not my type."

"…I see." She lowered her head so that the light reflecting off her glasses hid her face. "Come along, Uzumaki-san."

"I mean don't get me wrong, you're pretty cute and I love the whole heterochromia thing but… hey wait up!" Naruto increased his pace as the blushing Tsubaki ran away. A sight that wasn't missed by the few students that had started to arrive on campus.

 _Several Minutes Later_

"…" Sona crossed her fingers as she looked at the two panting, red faced youths before her. "I know that I requested you here as soon as possible, but I wasn't expecting you to race each other here. Still it is good to see you are getting along well."

There was a clear expression on Tsubaki's face that showed she wished to argue this, but given that Sona was her king, she decided to respectfully bite her tongue.

"Did you read the book I left you with?" Sona turned her attention to Naruto, who nodded.

"Yeah, started some of the practical stuff too! Watch this!" Naruto held out his right palm and wiggled his fingers slightly with an intense look of concentration. After several minutes of not much happening, there was a slow misty energy that started to rise from his hand and wave in the air, like a translucent tentacle growing from the palm of his hand.

"That is… considerable progress," Sona remarked bluntly as she walked from behind her desk to get a good look at the translucent limb. "You are capable of low-level magical manipulation. Can you control this additional appendage?"

"Not very well." Naruto admitted, but look at what I can do with it!" He suddenly whipped his hand and the appendage flung towards a bookcase in the corner and stuck to a book. With a jerk of his wrist, it flung backwards, unfortunately losing its grip and sending the book flying at Sona, who deftly caught it with a deadpan expression. "…It's a work in progress."

"So, I see," Sona nodded. While on the surface she looked disinterested, internally it was a different story. If Naruto was truly as hopeless with magical manipulation as she first suspected, such an increase in skill was almost frightening given it was less than 24 hours since he had started training. If he wasn't the novice he was pretending to be, then that lead to some worrying questions.

"I mean, I suck at book learning but thankfully that book you gave me had notes in it from a Sera-chan that really helped."

"Oh…" There was a brief flicked of panic that crossed Sona's face before she calmed herself down. "It appears my elder sister is actually useful for something after all. Well, let me have a look at the seal I placed on you. I want to see if it is still working as you seem to be moving around with very little difficulty. I may need to increase the setting on it."

"Ha… About that…" Naruto laughed weakly but took his jacket and shirt off all the same.

"What in the name of the Seven Sins?" Sona stepped backwards as she looked at the ridiculously complicated array on his chest.

"Seems there was a bit of a problem and long story short, the seal got messed up and my… er… uncle had to make some changes to it."

"There's making some changes and then there is completely re-writing everything." Despite her frustration, Sona had to admit the new sealing array was interesting, although its purpose eluded her. Knowing how dangerous seals were, she decided against tampering with it and instructed Naruto to get dressed again. "Very well. Tsubaki, I want you to do a basic introduction to Glyph magic. If he is able to manipulate raw magic, I imagine he can make a Glyph ring or two. The portal in the gym storage room was used earlier by Rias and her peerage, so just use that one."

"Understood," Tsubaki bowed her head.

"You may leave," Sona sat down behind her desk, staring into space as Naruto was hurried away. While an increase in Naruto's stats served her well, she couldn't help but feel a bit apprehensive. Despite her best efforts she could find no explanation for his abilities, nor why someone with such talent in sealing would feel the need to devote their efforts into creating such weird and wonderful designs to seal Naruto.

Was he hiding some great power that she risked unlocking with her actions? Was he a sleeper agent and the seal when triggered turned him into a violent monster? She shook her head, dispelling her doubts and walked over to the window, watching Naruto and Tsubaki walk towards the gym, being watched by the students that were all arriving.

"Aww… You look so cute when you're deep in thought! Give your big sis a kiss!"

With a tired sigh, Sona side-stepped a clumsy lunge from Serafall, before turning to acknowledge her sister.

"Serafall… Why are you wearing a school uniform?"

"I was trying to be incognito! You complained last time I visited in my usual attire," There was a pout on the Satan's face, which Sona chose not to acknowledge.

"Why are you here?"

"Something big is going on!" Serafall waved her hands energetically. "Apparently the Angels or Fallen might be doing something with the Beast-kin!"

"…Might be doing something?" Sona echoed.

"Well we don't know much yet, but I'm just giving you a warning." Serafall sat on the president's desk. "Can I get a thank you kiss?"

"Hmm…" Sona returned her gaze to the gym where Naruto and Tsubaki were. "Do you have nothing else for me to work with?"

"Well… Gabriel requested permission to visit your territory and I granted it, so she might know more, and we all know she can't lie." Serafall suggested. "Goady and Ajuka-chan are looking into to it as we speak. But enough about work stuff. Your big sis missed you!" She hugged Sona, who made no efforts to either return or reject the embrace.

"Do you know anything about a 'Uzumaki Naruto'?"

"Never heard of him," Serafall paused. "Wait… Is So-tan interested in a boy?! You can't! You've got your big sister!"

"The pearls of Veritas you leant to me; they can't be resisted right?"

"Nope! Even a Seraph or a Satan would be forced to tell the truth, although we would just phrase things, so we weren't lying."

"But what if it was a sleeper agent, someone who didn't even realise they were lying."

"Doesn't matter," Serafall released her younger sister, realising she wasn't going to receive her affection today. "While the brain would think they were telling the truth their soul would know otherwise and the Pearls look at your soul. So even if I was hypnotised to hate you and thought I did, the pearls would reveal the truth in my soul!"

"I see," Sona let out a sigh of relief. Whatever Naruto's motives and background, under the influence of the pearl's he had stated he wasn't a threat to them and that was good enough for Sona. He was probably uninvolved in all this fuss which meant her plans were free to continue. "Well it was nice seeing you," Sona sat behind her desk. "You can see yourself out."

"So-tan…" Serafall wailed, "We haven't seen each other in so long."

"… Fine you may stay a little while I guess," Sona sighed as her big sister cheered. "Just try not to cause any trouble."

"Yay!" Serafall hugged her little sister, who merely looked at some paperwork on her desk. "Oh? So that's your plan huh?"

"It is a possible plan," She quickly covered the document up.

"If it goes well you might get more support for your School plan. As expected of my genius lil' sis!" Serafall beamed. "Big sis will be cheering you on!"

Sona merely nodded, a faint smile on her face as she glanced in the direction of the sports hall. "Of course, that plan requires this Uzumaki Naruto being of a usable level. If he cannot fill the role, I need him to, I will find someone else."

"That's smart!" Serafall cooed her praises. "A devil can't show kindness without a reason!"

"Still… I find myself hoping he does meet my standards." Sona shuffled the papers on her desk, part of her wishing that she could oversee his training, while at the same time realising it would interfere with her own plans to be physically involved in his training. There remained a degree of plausible deniability, especially with the rumours that had started around the school.

Sona felt a little bad for this, seeing as she had helped fan the said flames and it was almost guaranteed _someone_ would see the two sneaking into the gym storage closet alone. After all, if her Queen happened to have a crush and teach someone as an excuse to spend time with them, then Sona could just say Tsubaki acted on her own. It was the perfect cover. She just hoped Tsubaki took it well when Sona finally told her.

 _In the extra dimensional training space (Gym Storage Room)_

Naruto stretched out as Tsubaki set about resetting the room, clearing the ruined pillars and debris from Issei's training session. With merely a wave of her arms, the room suddenly wavered and morphed into an empty hallway, with only the magical circle they entered through remaining.

Satisfied with the now empty room, Tsubaki walked over to Naruto.

"Sitri-sama has entrusted me with evaluating your skills. You have already demonstrated the ability to manipulate raw magical energy. Seeing as you have displayed the ability to create solid clones without any glyphs, I am assuming you have some sort of ability that allows you to bypass such things."

"Glyphs? You mean like the ones drawn on my stomach seals?" Naruto blinked.

"No…" Tsubaki held out her hand a small ring of crimson appeared, with a small sphere of water appearing within it. As he looked at the crimson ring circling the orb of magic, he noticed several strange symbols that seemed carved into the magical ring. "That crimson ring you see is known as a spell glyph, and the letters along it are runes. With enough skill, magic can be cast without the need for such a thing however powerful spells tend to still need them, unless you have some innate ability that bypasses the need for them."

"Like my ability to create clones?"

"Indeed. Essentially a Spell Glyph is a command to cause magical energy to behave in a way that you cannot normally get it to. This is a single Glyph spell, so is not very powerful. The two runes used in its construction are 'Create' and 'Water' and as you can see, all it does is create a small sphere of water. If I were to add another layer to it, say 'Eject' and 'Rapid' we get this…" A second ring formed around the first ring, only rotating in the opposite direction and the small sphere of water was suddenly spat out with great force before the Glyphs faded from view.

"Whoa…" Naruto whistled as the spell left a fist sized crater in the wall it struck.

"By maintaining the two glyphs the spell would have created a high pressure stream, however the 'Eject' rune is a destructive one that cancel the glyphs so if I wanted a constant stream I would have to use the 'Recycle' Rune on an external Glyph to constantly refresh the 'Eject' 'Rapid' Spell Glyph. It is basically a programming language used to control magical energy that was devised so Humans could use magic too." Tsubaki paused as she saw the dumb expression on Naruto's face. "This means nothing to you does it?"

"Sorry," Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "I sorta just try and do stuff and well… do it."

There was a flicker of a smile across Tsubaki's face before she let out a sigh. "I see… I must admit, usually someone needs either the blessings of a devil or angel to use magic, less they are a magic race themselves. You appear human but at the same time appear to be something else. Still the magic control I explained should work regardless. Devil gifted magic is controlled through Spell Glyphs composed of Runes whereas Angel gifted magic works through Prayer Glyphs. They work very similarly however."

"So, if someone made a pact with an angel, they cast spells through prayer?" Naruto blinked.

"Indeed. Since historically those who performed miracles through Prayer Glyphs, it is ingrained into the human consciousness that prayer can create miracles, even if they don't understand that a connection to an angel is required to realise these prayers." Tsubaki nodded.

"I'm surprised my uncle didn't mention this," Naruto mumbled.

"That would be the one who drew that seal correct?" Tsubaki nodded. "It isn't rare knowledge, but only an angel or devil who regularly 'blesses' humans with the ability to use magic would probably know it. For a natural spellcaster, they never had to think about using magic so wouldn't have ever learned this workaround method."

"But you do know it," Naruto pointed out.

"I am not a natural spellcaster." Tsubaki shook her head. "I was once just a human from a powerful spiritual clan. While we didn't make deals with Devils or Angels, we did have powers from a pact made long ago and were able to use magic in the way I just did. Of course, after my reincarnation I gained the ability to use magic freely like a devil, but I decided to keep my magic knowledge polished for the day it might serve Sitri-sama."

"I keep hearing about this reincarnation," Naruto crossed his arms, "So you have to die?"

"It is not quite that dramatic." Tsubaki shook her head. "Although one could say I was already dead… I had a… curse that made my family keep their distance but thanks to Sitri-sama I was able to control my curse and break free from my isolation."

"Ah…" Naruto smiled softly, "So that's why you are so loyal to her?"

"Without Sitri-sama… I might not have even lived this long. She never asked for anything but in my darkest moment she saved me and for that, she has my eternal loyalty." Tsubaki suddenly blinked. "How odd… To freely reveal such details…" She looked at Naruto who was smiling innocently at her. "How out of character for me." Shaking her head and hardening her features she created another spell Glyph and a small ball of fire appeared in her outstretched palm.

"That does look kinda cool," Naruto looked at the dancing flame, "Let me guess 'Create' and 'Fire' runes?"

"Indeed," The long-haired girl nodded as she watched the flame dancing. "In order to create a Spell Glyph, you have to use your magical manipulation skill to force the raw magical energy into a ring, then force your will on it via the runes." A second and third glyph appeared, each switching rotation and the ball screamed into the wall at the far end of the hall before exploding. "That second glyph had the runes 'Eject', 'Rapid' much like the water spell I cast. The third glyph had 'Contact' and 'Explode'."

"A real fireball, That's cool! Man, you looked awesome doing that." Naruto grinned, "Now _this_ is magic! Can you teach me that?!" He grabbed her hands excitedly causing a blush on the usually serious girl's face, who suddenly pulled her hands free.

"W-well learning Runes may take some time as it is like a new language and that is only after you manage to form a Glyph by controlling raw magic so…"

"So, I have to turn that weird raw magic tentacle into a disk, right?"

"Y-yes." Tsubaki blinked as Naruto focused all his attempts into trying to manipulate his energy. The look of focus on his face impressed the Queen, even if his progress wasn't anything to write home about. _'Maybe Sitri-sama is right about him having some sort of potential…"_

She was interrupted by a sudden explosion as the raw magic fought back against Naruto's attempts to crush it into a ring and released all its compressed energy with enough force to throw Naruto across the room. The blast had also knocked the raven-haired woman backwards slightly and messed up her hair slightly, but before Tsubaki could head over to him, he got up and tried again, and when this resulted in a similar explosion, he got up and tried again.

She watched as time and time again, he got thrown across the room and got up and tried again. Each time lasting a little longer, getting a little closer to his goal. Tsubaki had always been one who believed that raw talent trumped hard work. No matter how skilled she had become with her magic, it had taken Sona, someone born with a natural advantage, to free her. Yet as she watched Naruto refuse to give in, she couldn't help but feel her respect for him rise.

While there were so many unanswered questions about him, as she watched him refuse to give up, even as he got rag dolled across the room, she found herself wanting to cheer him on, but quelled the impulse. So, it was a little after three hours when a battered, exhausted but widely grinning Naruto stood before her, a ring of glowing energy formed before him. Unlike her devil energy, this one was golden and seemed to radiate a soft humming.

"How'd you like that…" He smirked.

"Impressive," Tsubaki nodded. "I figured you would have given up after ten minutes with the damage you were taking."

"This?" Naruto gestured to his bruises and scrapes, "Is nothing compared to what Asia will suffer if I'm not strong enough to help her. I don't have long to prepare so I have to give everything my all."

"You mentioned you had only just met this Asia person correct? Why put yourself through so much to save someone you barely know?"

"…A long time ago my weakness hurt not only me but people I cared deeply about. So, I swore I'd get strong and I'd never make them cry again. When I saw Asia, she reminded me so much of those two that… I just couldn't turn my back on her. Even if she doesn't think she needs saving I… I can't just leave her to die."

"I see," Tsubaki smiled softly. "Well I will do my part. Sitri-sama requested I train you and so I will. But first you need to get fixed up. We will continue your magic lessons after school. By the end of today I am expecting you to be able to cast a single Glyph spell. For your information: Standard battle magic is usually between two and three glyphs long. More powerful spells have more glyphs but the larger glyphs and the more runes you use increases the difficulty in creating, maintaining and casting the spell as well as the energy required to do so. As an example, a nine-glyph spell usually has a 'casting' time of fifteen minutes and requires many people working in concert. That's pretty much the highest tier of spell casting though. Ten Glyph spells are theoretically possible but considering the First Spell is supposedly an Eleven Glyph spell, you can imagine that Tier Ten is world level magic."

"First spell?" Naruto tilted his head curiously.

"Sacred Spell of Creation: Genesis." Tsubaki smiled, as if pleased by his interest in the subject, "The spell with which the Creator created the world. It is one for the few godly spells. Genesis, Judgement and Revelation are the most known ones. Of course these spells were probably not case using the Glyph system and their ranking is only hypothetical."

"Can anyone else cast them?" Naruto blinked, his mind boggling with the implications of such a spell.

"Of course not. Only the creator had that power. Each ring requires exponentially more power to form than the last one. Not even the Beast had enough power to cast one of those spells. They say that the Creator used the spells to bless his Seraph's so each one has some sort of ability tied to one of the spells." Tsubaki lead Naruto to the magic circle, "Now let's get you to the nurse's office for some rest. I have some errands to attend to for Sitri-sama so will have to leave you with Hyuuga-sensei until we continue our lessons later."

"Right," Naruto nodded and walked out, helped by Tsubaki.

Unfortunately for them their exit from the Gym storage (with Naruto looking a little dishevelled and Tsubaki's hair slightly unkempt) was not unnoticed by a girl who happened to be waiting for a friend outside the gym.

It didn't take long for the rumour mill to fire up in full force.

 _In the Abandoned Church_

"Amen," Asia clapped her hands together as she finished her prayers, before standing upright and brushing the dust from her knees. Satisfied that she had spoken to Him, she then decided to get along with her chores, namely restoring the church back to its former glory.

As she made her way through the pews, she noticed two figures talking about something, recognising one of them as Dohnaseek, who Asia was ashamed to say she felt uncomfortable around. He was an angel after all, a servant of His will and it wasn't right that she, a follower of Him, doubted the intentions of one of His angels. The man he was talking to was also a cause of concern for Asia. A wild-eyed man who would always widely gesture when talking. There was a subtle madness in his eyes that worried Asia and she prayed for his recovery every night. This strange priest had responsible for guiding her to this church, but she knew very little about him besides he was a high-ranking exorcist, one of the Vatican's personal agents.

Whatever the two were talking about, it was clear the Exorcist was irate about something, but Dohnaseek seemed to have little to no interest, which only seemed to infuriate the Exorcist. Asia stepped to try and de-escalate the argument when a soft but firm grip on her shoulder stopped her and she turned to look at the Angel Raynare.

"Raynare-sama," Asia bobbed her head in deference. "Should we not stop them?"

"Let them bicker, it is probably about nothing important," The fallen angel sat down on a pew, gesturing for Asia to sit beside her. "If you get yourself killed before the allotted time, then He will not forgive your trespasses."

"I… I understand," Asia sat down beside the Angel who appeared to have something on her mind. "Is there something wrong?"

"That blonde… he infuriates me." Raynare scowled. "He is clearly going to interfere in our holy work. I would act now but I cannot risk a confrontation with Jiraiya-sama... Not just yet anyway."

"Half-angel-san?" Asia smiled brightly. "He is a good person, I think. He just doesn't understand why I must do this. I'm sure when it is all over, he will understand. I have sinned and must make amends to Him."

"…" Raynare looked at the blissfully ignorant smile on the young nun's face. "Yeah… It doesn't matter whether what happened was your fault or not… In the end that isn't what He sees."

"Raynare-sama?"

" _Well… Isn't it His fault for making you believe me?"_ A mocking voice emerged from the dark recesses of Raynare's memory before she forced it back down. "Damn it… That boy… Making me remember pointless things." She punched the pew with such forced that it exploded in a shower of splinters, causing a surprised squeak from Asia.

"Is everything alright?" Asia asked.

Seeing her trusting eyes starting at her, Raynare felt the bile rise in her throat. She felt angry and wanted to punch the trust from that stupid face of the innocent girl. _'Don't you realise you are being played? Don't you realise that being so trusting will always leave you broken and alone, cursed for having the audacity to have faith in this crap sack of a world made by a 'oh so loving' Father who would condemn you for naught?'_

As if sensing her agitation, Asia quickly left the fallen angel, muttering apologies and returning to cleaning the church.

Raynare watched her, anger slowly giving way to guilt. Still it didn't matter. In a few days the last of the supplies she needed would arrive and then Asia would be dead, and she would be able to serve Azazel better, the one figure worthy of her respect. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to fade into a familiar dream.

 _The bodies of her fellow Fallen Angels laid scattered on the floor, her commanding officer having fled, leaving her and one remaining Fallen to fight for themselves. The other fallen angel was currently crying out, blood pooling from his lips as he clawed at the metallic helmet of the Angel currently withdrawing his sword from the fallen angel's chest. Casting aside the corpse of her ally, the angel walked towards her, bloody handprints on his helmet and crimson stains on the otherwise glorious silver armour and sword he carried, his pure white wings mocking her own darkened feathers._

 _She had been abandoned again, just when she thought she could fall no lower. She wanted to howl in defiance at a God who cursed her, at a leader who betrayed her, but she had not even the energy to wail._

" _Fallen scum," The armoured angel roared. "Repent to the Holy Father with your life!"_

" _Go to hell…" Raynare cursed._

" _The Devils shall feel my steel soon enough heretic, now die!" He raised his blade and Raynare closed her eyes for a blow that never came. When she opened them, the armoured angel's torso fell to the floor, his legs still standing and a disinterested Azazel stood beside him, wiping the blood from a curved saber before kicking over the legs with a chuckle._

" _Get up will you, I can't have you dying on me just yet," Azazel winked at Raynare. "I'm running out of forces quickly enough without you giving up on life as well."_

" _Why… Why did you save me? I am a lowly Fallen…"_

" _Don't be impressed because I chose to save you. An angel like that was never a threat to me and I need all the manpower I can get. If you want to find someone truly worth serving, find someone who would leap to fight a battle they can't win to protect you." Azazel shook his head. "Still, if you want to help me out, I can always use another soldier who knows how to fight." He offered her a hand, no pretence of good intentions. He was honest and in his outstretched hand, Raynare understood this was a man worth serving. So long as she remained useful to him, he would never cast her aside, unlike those she had followed in the past._

Raynare opened her eyes. "I must remain useful to Azazel-sama. That is all that matters." With this she cast one last glance at Asia before heading out of the church for some fresh air. "That is all that ever mattered."

 _To the First Aid Room_

"Hello? Hinata-san?" Naruto called out as he walked into the infirmary, receiving no answer. Even the little gremlin Hanabi wasn't around.

As he poked his head around the infirmary, he found one of the beds occupied but he had never seen the inhabitant before, and he was pretty sure he would have remembered seeing this woman.

She was beautiful. No… Beautiful didn't cover it. In fact, Naruto was sure there weren't any words that could accurately describe her. Even 'Perfect' failed to convey the depth of her beauty and charm. He found himself gawking until a sudden sharp pain in his head brought him to his senses. The woman sleeping on the bed had glistening, curly blonde hair and was sleeping atop the covers, her soft breathing was relaxing to hear.

There was another shooting pain in his head and Naruto realised staring at a sleeping woman was pretty creepy and turned to leave only to freeze at the sound of a soft yawn and the noise of someone stirring.

"Oh my? I only meant to rest my eyes." The woman's voice had a soft musical lilt to it that spread warmth throughout Naruto's body, as if triggering some sort of instinct that this voice was a friend. "Oh dear!" There was a soft laugh. "I didn't realise I had a visitor, how rude of me."

"Ah, I was just looking for Hyuuga-sensei and…"

"Oh Hinata-chan? She was here a moment ago. She must have gone for a walk to let me rest. I have been really busy these past few days."

"I-is that so." Naruto turned around to see the woman smiling at him. Her eyes were blue and almost like soothing pools that he could stare into for eternity and not get bored, although a sudden shooting pain in his head caused him to look away.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to harm you. I don't have much control over that." The woman hugged Naruto into her impressive chest and rubbed the top off his hair. "There, there. I hope this makes up for it."

"I I-I'm fine!" Naruto broke free and laughed nervously, although the woman didn't seem offended by his actions.

"I apologise if I caused any offence. I'm not from around here." The woman tilted her head. "Although I get the feeling you too aren't from here."

"Well I am from a place that is just a long car drive away so I'm not _that_ much of a foreigner." Naruto laughed. "I'm sorry… I never asked your name. I'm Uzumaki Naruto, pleased to meet you."

"Uzumaki Naruto," The woman smiled softly, "I see… My name is Gabriel."

"Oh? That sounds European?" Naruto gestured to her blonde hair and blue eyes. "I mean you look foreign, but you speak pretty good Japanese and well…" He gestured to himself, "I'm not exactly your typical Japanese person."

"In more ways than one I would wager." Gabriel smiled, "May I ask you a question?"

"Sure," Naruto shrugged.

"You… are a boy, right?"

"Eh?"

"It's just… I thought this was a girl's school." Gabriel titled her head innocently.

"Oh! Yeah, yeah it is." Naruto nodded. "I'm a janitor, gotta keep the place looking tidy after all."

"I see," Gabriel beamed at him. "That is a hard but important job."

"W-well thanks," The blonde protagonist laughed, a faint blush on his face.

There was an akward moment as Gabriel stared at him, before her face slowly started to change expressions, as if something had dawned on her. When she next spoke, it was in a quite voice, as if she were scared of his answer.

"May I ask you another question? Do you believe there are some sins that can never be forgiven?"

"Well that's a bit of a topic change," Naruto crossed his arms, "But I suppose so. Somethings can never be forgiven."

"I see…" There was a resigned look on her face but before she could say anything else, Naruto continued to voice his thoughts.

"But I don't think that means you should just give up," Naruto crossed his arms, "If you screw up, you try and make it right again. Maybe you will never earn that forgiveness, maybe you don't deserve it, but I would still say you should try. After all, whether you deserve it or not, the other person may forgive you."

"Is that so?" Gabriel smiled. "I came here to ask that question to someone I had wronged in the past. I... I had hoped to find some solace but I suppose that is impossible isn't it? No matter the answer… You cannot forgive me because you don't understand my sins."

"Gabriel?" Naruto blinked.

"I am sorry Cursed Child…" A single tear rolled down her face, "Your father's death, your need to hide from Heaven and Hell… They are all my fault. I will not ask your forgiveness… for I am not worthy."

"What?" Naruto blinked but before he could ask another question the run was flooded with light and warmth flooded over him and when it had gone, he was stood alone. "What the hell?"

"Ah Naruto-san!" A cheerful voice drew him from his stupor. "I never saw you enter." Hinata remarked as she walked towards him. "Er… Is everything okay?"

"I…" Naruto looked at the empty bed and back to the confused nurse. "I really don't know. I… I think I need a lie down."

"Please, make yourself at home," Hinata smiled softly.

"Y-yeah." Naruto clambered onto the bed, his mind racing. This Gabriel had called him 'Cursed Child' and it had sounded strangely familiar. Just who the hell was she and what did she mean?

With such thoughts racing around his head, Naruto struggled to relax. One thing was for sure though.

He needed to be ready for anything.


	4. 4: The Duties of Devils

Naruto: Fatebreaker

A/N: Hey all, sorry for the long delay with this chapter. Suffice to say life has been all over the show for me lately. This is the last of 'training' set up for the Asia arc so in a chapter or two we'll be moving on to the main storyline.

In future to try and speed up chapter releases I will release shorter chapters (not terrible shorter, just around 11K words as opposed to the 15K+ I usually aim for). Here's hoping you enjoy this chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in the story, except the ones I do

* * *

Chapter 4: The Duties of the Devils

 _Where Magic is learnt and Precious Assets are Exposed_

"Damn it," Naruto cursed as he leaned against a ruined pillar, breathing heavily. Around his outstretched hand, a small glowing ring rotated erratically, its size constantly changing as if being pulled apart by unseen hands. Biting his lip, the blonde strained his limited magical control to reduce the ring to a more stable configuration, barely wider than his outstretched palm, sweat beading down his brow as he fought against the unstable magical construct, two clones stood either side of him assisting.

According to Tsubaki, until the magical ring had runes engraved into it, it would be highly unstable and if he were to accidentally lose control, or release the magical energy prematurely, rather than a spell he would be rewarded with a powerful explosion, just like the ones he had suffered when trying to successfully create the magical ring in the first place.

While he waited for the clones to help the 'glyph' to stabilise, he mentally recapped what Tsubaki had explained to him. The raw magical construct he was forming was called an 'unsaturated glyph'. In order to make it into a spell he had to engrave runes into it, thus forming a 'saturated glyph' which was a stable construct. He could then create another unsaturated glyph and repeat, but the number of runes required to stabilise a glyph grew exponentially larger, requiring more magical control and energy, as well as the time to create said glyphs, but the more glyphs the more powerful the spell. Apparently, a competent mage should be able to cast up to a three-glyph spell. Six was the sign of an excellent mage and anything above that was either a multi-mage effort or required a seriously powerful mage, of which there were barely any that Tsubaki knew of besides Gabriel of the Seraphs.

The name Gabriel had caused him to remember the strange woman who had claimed responsibility for his father's death. With no way of knowing if they were the same person, or if her claims were even true, he decided against dwelling on such thoughts until he could speak to Jiraiya. Until then he had to maintain this highly explosive, unstable magical ring that even if he wanted to, he couldn't stabilise properly.

As it stood, Naruto didn't know how to make any runes to 'saturate' the Glyph, but Tsubaki had promised to teach him a few so he could start practicing magic, which he couldn't help but feel giddy about. Apparently the usual practice was to spend two weeks learning to control the unstable form before passing on the knowledge of runes, but given his time constraints, Tsubaki had decided on a more… challenging training session, namely her trying her damnedest to make Naruto lose control of the ring via launching attacks at him, forcing him to both evade and not let the unstable spell ring detonate.

Satisfied at the (relatively) stable appearance of the unfilled glyph around his right hand, Naruto peered from behind the rubble, eyes scanning for any signs of the vice president's current location. As if on a timer, he spotted distant red glows and burst from his hiding place as several small but white-hot fireballs struck the pillar and exploded, sending shards of pillar and clouds of dust into the air, as well as destroying one of the two clones that had been supporting him.

As he dashed to his new hiding place, the dust got in his lungs and he coughed, the unstable glyph warping wildly as his concentration dropped but he quickly got the glyph under control with the assistance of his remaining clone, just in time to duck under a few blasts of high pressure water that would have knocked him flat on his back if they had connected. His last clone was not so lucky and was torn apart without mercy, yet Naruto got a flicker in his mind of the direction the spell had come from.

"That's enough." Tsubaki's voice suddenly called, a slight hint of satisfaction on her voice as she stepped from a pillar much closer to Naruto than the spells had come from.

"What?" Naruto glanced between her and the spot he had been attacked from, "Can you teleport or something?"

"Or something yes," Tsubaki adjusted her glasses, her lips twitching in amusement at Naruto's exasperated expression. "You can discharge the glyph now, remember do it carefully or else you could…"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Naruto replied flippantly as he slowly allowed the glyph to leak energy until it faded away to nothing.

"Very good," Tsubaki frowned.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No…" Tsubaki shook her head. It was… unusual how fast Naruto seemed to be grasping concepts, almost as if he wasn't the complete novice he was claiming to be, yet Sitri had proven he wasn't a threat thanks to the pearls of Veritas. Maybe it was a side effect of him training with his clones. She decided to address her concerns later and instead gestured to the centre of the room. "As promised, I shall now pass on the knowledge of some runes. Now a rune is a command to raw magical energy, to get it to act in a specific manner. There are several types of Glyph but for the time being, I will teach you an element and a few command runes."

"So I'll be able to use magic?" Naruto grinned.

"Yes… Although it will take a lot of training to be able to use it properly. Engraving runes into a Glyph is a difficult task, as not only are you engraving your will into pure magical energy, but you must keep said magical energy stable all the time. I am reasonably certain that you will be able to keep the glyph stable judging by your performance in my training session."

"Awesome," Despite the seriousness of his task, Naruto couldn't help grinning like a little kid. If Tsubaki noticed this, she decided not to comment.

"Now runes are unique to each individual, as they are essentially a sign of your soul enforcing its will. In order to learn a rune, you have to experience it."

"What?" Naruto titled his head.

"Usually this is done by finding a magical ley line, an area where natural magic builds up, and absorbing the magical energy. Of course, with raw magic there is no guarantee what sort of runes you will awaken in yourself, so this is… not ideal."

"I kinda need to get strong fast and relying on a magical Gacha doesn't seem like a good way to get stronger."

"Indeed." Tsubaki reached into her uniform and pulled out a small scroll, "Fortunately, it is possible to 'write' runes onto specially prepared scrolls which can transfer the knowledge of runes without finding a ley line and relying on random chance."

Naruto took the offered scroll and unravelled it, revealing a blank page but before he could comment he felt his entire body overtaken by an intense heat, yet didn't feel any pain or smell any burning. For a moment, he _was_ fire. _He saw the cries of suffering but also the salvation of the poor from the icy cold that threatened them. He saw the raw destruction and the burning of an open wound to seal it and_ suddenly he was back with Tsubaki, the strange visions passed before he had time to fully understand what had happened. The scroll in his hands crumbled away into dust until not a single trace remained. "What… I…"

"It is an unusual experience." Tsubaki smiled as she looked at Naruto's dumbstruck expression. "The runes contain the very essence of their purpose. In order to manipulate magic into fire, you must understand just what Fire is. It is more than just some element, it is the essence of destruction and cleansing, of nurturing and punishing. The elements are not as simple as one might originally envision; they are life."

"R-right."

"This scroll contains the 'Create' Rune. Once you have absorbed this one, I shall explain the basics of spell casting and when I am satisfied, I will instruct you in more runes."

"Let's do this," Naruto nodded as he accepted this scroll and again he felt a strange sensation overtake him and he saw _a blacksmith hammering at a red hot iron bar, a craftsman carefully chiselling away at a pillar of marble, giving purpose beyond its initial design, he saw Tsubaki's naked form glistening with sweat as they reached their combined climax, Tsubaki's eyes glistening as together they created a new life within her and_ suddenly he snapped back.

"Is everything alright?" Tsubaki asked.

"Y-y-yes. Fine! Perfectly fine!" Naruto shook his head furiously, unable to shake the image of Tsubaki's lust laden eyes. "Er… Do we see things that have actually happened or will happen or something?"

"No, just a visual representation of what the Rune you learned meant. They are little more than hallucinations based on your own personal understanding. Why?"

"No reason," Naruto coughed awkwardly. He wasn't entirely sure how Tsubaki would take 'I envisioned getting you pregnant' and he did need her help to save Asia.

"Well then, time to cast a spell." Tsubaki smiled. "First form the ring as you have been doing."

"Right," Naruto held out his arm and allowed the energy to materialise. It took him a few seconds before the vice president nodded in satisfaction.

"Now remember the sensation of creating and engrave your feelings into the ring." Tsubaki instructed.

"Er…" Naruto gulped as he recalled the… intensity of the visions of creation, but judging by the approving nod from his instructor, she didn't notice and the glyph started to change, the ring seeming to solidify in appearance and several repeating runes appeared on it.

"Now remember the fire."

More runes appeared and suddenly the ring juddered, as if a sudden vibration passed through it and the glyph completed itself.

"Impressive. I see why Sona-sama has interest in you now. If this truly is your first-time casting, the quality of your spell is considerably better than I would have expected. Of course, the total casting time was around half a minute, and this is a very basic spell, so you aren't combat ready yet, but you are making strides to that goal. Now simply release the glyph to cast the spell. Don't worry this is stable so it won't just explode."

As soon as Naruto stopped enforcing control over the magical construct, it collapsed in on itself, forming a white-hot dot before suddenly transforming into a white-hot flame that flickered out of existence in less than a second.

"Hehehehe!" Naruto couldn't help but laugh excitedly. "Magic… I can actually use magic!"

"Yes, that is…"

"This is great! I can really do it!" Naruto grabbed Tsubaki's hands and danced around, the vice president blushing wildly. "I'm gonna save Asia! Please teach me some more sensei!"

"W-well I suppose if you can get your casting time halved, I might teach you some more runes but…" Before she could continue Naruto had released her and started conjuring up another glyph as well as a few clones to assist him. She shook her head as she watched him fondly.

If nothing else, he wasn't lacking in enthusiasm, although after an hour of casting the same spell, he was starting to look worse for wear so Tsubaki decided to call it a day, but not before bestowing him with the knowledge of water so he could train without burning down his house.

* * *

"Boost!" Issei grit her teeth as she narrowly dodged under the whip of lightning that slashed the tree behind her in half. Had that hit her, she would have been out of commission for a day or so. She was kinda glad that they were 'sparring' in a simulated training area, as more than a few trees had been felled by the arcane assault the spunky girl was trying to weather.

"You'll have to be faster than that~" A cheery voice declared, sending shivers down Issei's spine as she realised that Akeno was undeniably a sadist. The two of them were sparring (well Akeno was doing her best to shorten Issei's lifespan) as a final test before Rias gave her the all clear to join Kiba and Koneko on their rogue devil hunt.

"Remember!" Rias called out from the side lines, where she and the rest of her peerage were stood watching with varying degrees of interest, "Your Sacred Gear allows you to 'Boost' every ten seconds, but your body still has a physical limit. If you push yourself too hard you will only end up damaging yourself."

"R-right!" Issei yelped as Akeno's whip of crackling electricity suddenly changed its path, catching her off guard as the magical attack skimmed her hair, filling her nose with the smell of singed hair. She did a mental count of how many boosts she had used, reckoning the count was around three. Theoretically that would mean she was 8 times more powerful than usual, yet it was still taking everything she had to dodge the Queen piece's almost lazy attacks. Just how big was the gap between herself and Akeno, Issei found herself wondering.

"Let's try a second whip, shall we?" Akeno cheerfully called out.

"W-wait a second!"

"Your enemies won't wait until you are ready," Akeno's voice held not an iota of sympathy as she summoned a second whip of energy and began furiously lashing out with both. Each impact caused a small explosion and Issei found herself getting peppered by chunks of tree and dirt as she narrowly evaded the sadistic devil's attacks.

"Boost!" Issei felt a definite strain on her body as she activated her fourth successive boost. The very earth below her feet exploded as she launched herself away from Akeno, trying to get out of the range of her spells, although it appeared that their range was freely manipulated by her opponent.

Mentally counting down until she could use her last boost, she had a flash of inspiration. She knew her physical limit of Boosts was five, leaving her with one last boost and after watching the whips of lightning for some time, Issei was fairly certain that up close, Akeno would be unable to effectively defend herself with the mid to long range spell. If she timed everything perfectly, she would be able to close the distance and hopefully end the fight.

"She's going to do something stupid," Koneko remarked.

"Oh?" Kiba glanced at the short girl. "What makes you say that?"

"Her eyes," Rias smiled softly. "They have a spark as if she has thought of something."

"I see," Kiba glanced at Issei. "Shall I prepare the first aid kit?"

"It… would probably be wise," Rias sighed.

Meanwhile Akeno's relentless assault showed no sign of stopping. Unlike Rias and the others who were watching the fight through a magical screen, she couldn't see her opponent's eyes and was mostly unaware of what was going through Issei's mind.

' _Maybe I should throw some more long-range spells at her.'_ Akeno smiled inwardly. _'She is quite good at dodging my whips. Come to think of it, her final boost should be coming up soon. Desperation can make people do some foolish things. I'd best be careful not to accidentally kill her. Dying once was probably enough for her.'_

"Alright!" Issei grinned as she rolled under the whips. "BOOST!" Each step flung her towards Akeno, who was surprised by the sudden change in strategy, but was far too experienced to let this affect her composure.

Knowing her whips had been extended too much to be used against the rapidly approaching Issei, she cancelled the spell and pointed two fingers at Issei. "[Lightning Lance]." A small orb of lightning formed before launching itself at Issei in a long narrow beam of arcane electricity. The speed of the attack was such that Issei was unable to properly respond, but she did manage to avoid being neutralised completely, although as the attack struck her left arm it went limp as the electric signals in it were messed up by the arcane energies now coursing through it. ' _She is still moving? The pain should at least give her pause but to continue her charge regardless… This girl is fun~'_

"It's not over yet!" Issei cleared the last few feet and cocked her right fist, only for a glowing glyph to appear on the floor beneath her feet. "Eh?"

"[Thor's Glyph]." Akeno whispered as a burst of electricity surged upwards from the glyph. "A trap glyph I designed to stun anyone who wants to get up close and personal. That lets me play with them at my…"

"RARGH!" Struggling against her own muscles, Issei lashed out with a desperate slash, catching Akeno by surprise. The attack should have fallen short but Akeno noticed a ghostly dragon claw surround Issei's hand that extended her range and, taken by surprise by this new ability, she was left unable to dodge as the weak magical slash cut through her clothes and bra, causing them to fall to the floor in fragments and expose her impressive bust to all.

Issei was almost sure she heard a deep voice comment ' _ **Nice'**_ as she fell to the floor, the sight of the wonderful breasts before her. The instant before she hit the ground, she wondered if she had a chance to grow that big but the strange thought was knocked out of her head as she hit the floor.

"Oh my?" Akeno was genuinely surprised as her trap glyph finally took effect and the girl fell to the floor twitching. "Being able to resist that spell is quite impressive… But now I have you at my mercy~"

"That's enough Akeno." Rias appeared next to the downed Issei, who was twitching periodically. "Kiba, please see to Issei."

"As you wish," Kiba nodded and got to work, treating the minor burns and injuries Issei had suffered.

"Do you think she is ready?" Rias glanced at her queen nervously, as the lightning master started to cover herself up. "I don't want to risk her dying (again)."

"I know you don't want to see any of your peerage hurt, but we must expose ourselves to danger in order to grow so we can serve you better," Akeno shook her head softly. "I believe Issei is at a level where she can assist in the more dangerous missions. After all I severely doubt the rogue devils Sitri-san asked us to investigate are anywhere near the level of me. If I had to give a guess at her current power level? I'd say she is C-Ranked, possibly even B-Ranked when fully boosted. In time her body will become more acclimated to magic and 'Boosting' and she may even become A-Ranked or higher, with the right training."

"I see," Rias nodded. "Then I trust your judgement. If you think Issei is ready to help Kiba and Koneko, I won't second guess you."

"Like I said, I will be personally overseeing the mission so will step in if I feel I am needed." Akeno reassured her king. "After an hour's rest her body should be fully recovered, and we can begin the mission."

While the two heads of the peerage were talking, Issei was slowly getting her ability to move back.

"Don't think I'm gonna fall for you just because you are healing me." Issei warned Kiba who only smiled back warmly.

"I assure you, that is not my goal."

"I've got my eyes on you," Issei remarked.

"So, boost affects your magical resistance? I suppose that is to be expected but still, it was a surprise seeing you able to move after taking a lightning spell directly."

"Well I am pretty awesome, aren't I?" Issei grinned as Kiba helped her to her feet. "Could I learn a spell like that?"

"Unfortunately, you appear to be more of a… brute force fighter. Raw magical damage is your forte rather than specific spells or elements." Kiba sounded slightly apologetic, but Issei wasn't disheartened.

"Raw magical damage? So kinda like Flare and Ultima compared to Firaga and Blizzaga?"

"I… I am not entirely sure what that means," Kiba's tone was full of confusion. "But I mean you are more a physical fighting than magical one. You will probably learn many augmenting spells to increase your effectiveness in close combat and maybe some basic magical manipulation spells to turn raw magical energy into an attack."

"Oh? Like a Kamehameha?" Issei's eyes sparkled. "That sounds awesome!"

"Well more like the dragon claw thing you just did."

"Dragon claw?"

"You didn't notice?" Koneko finally joined the conversation. "Your last attack, you created a magical dragon claw that extended your attack range."

"I did?" Issei blinked.

Koneko looked at Issei as if she wanted to comment but decided against it and fell silent again.

"It looks like you'll be joining us against the Rogue devils." Kiba glanced at Rias and Akeno who were deep in discussion.

"Annoying." Koneko frowned.

"What's a rogue devil?"

"Ah…" Kiba glanced at Koneko, but it was clear the small girl had little to no interest in talking to Issei so the sword creating devil continued, "Well you know how you are a member of a peerage?"

"Yeah, Rias-senpai is our leader, right?"

"Correct. A rogue devil is one who has no allegiance to a family, or peerage. Usually in order to live on Earth, you need to be sponsored or belong to one of the great families, but occasionally devils sneak out and cause havoc. If they are discovered, it is the responsibility of the territory owner to ensure they are dealt with."

"Territory owner?"

"All three factions have territories on Earth that they are expected to monitor," Kiba explained. "For example, Kuoh is in the middle of Sitri devil territory, so it falls upon the Sitri clan to monitor and police this area. Admittedly this is a special case, as Sitri-san allows the other factions to have small embassies in the area."

"Wait… If it's the School President's territory, why are we dealing with it?"

"As a favour, also as training for our peerage. Sitri-san is a good friend of Rias-sama and as such she allows her to go to school here as well as perform her devil duties. She is also somewhat shielded from… other individuals here."

"Is Rias-senpai in danger?!"

"No… There are just some people she would prefer to avoid and being in Sitri territory grants her a degree of protection from them, for the time being at least." Kiba paused, "But I would focus on getting stronger. The Devil world is not a friendly one, despite your initial contact with Rias-sama. She is a more of an exception to the rule."

"I see." Issei didn't see but didn't want to appear stupid so simply looked thoughtful and nodded. "So… I just need to get strong so I can help Rias-sama out?"

"Correct." Kiba nodded with a soft smile. "In that goal, we are all united."

"Then I need to train even more! Plus if I can Naruto to help us, won't that make things easier for Rias-sama?"

"I would focus on just resting for now. We have a mission shortly. After that… well then we shall look into more training."

"R-right," Issei laughed awkwardly. "I guess going into a mission exhausted would be a bad idea."

"Indeed." Kiba took a step back from Issei, "Your wounds seem fine. Just relax for a moment and we will go over the current plan."

"Right!" Issei nodded. If Rias-senpai needed her to be strong, then she totally would! She had always wanted sisters and Rias was like the perfect big sister. Clenching her fists, she listened intently as Kiba told her about the upcoming mission.

She wouldn't let Rias down.

* * *

Some distance away, right on the outskirts of Sitri territory, there was a small church. This church barely held enough space and pews for 30 people, but every sermon was packed, largely due to the energy and exuberance of the church's only fully ordained priest, Reverend Might Guy.

"Can you feel the flames of Faith warm your soul?!" Guy declared to his communion. "These are dark days my fellow Christians but fear not the dark, for He is always with us! No matter the darkness that haunts you, let His Word guide you through the darkness of despair and into the Bright pastures of His Love. Now it pains me to say this, but this service draws to a close. But even as you part remember, the doors of His are always open to the faithful and those who need guidance. Go, with the love of Him up in Heaven!"

There were cries of 'Amen!' and 'Hallelujah!' as the faithful left the church, the setting sun casting the homely church in warm hues of red.

"Another moving service reverend!" A young boy, who looked like a younger clone of the reverend clapped furiously, tears in his eyes. "I could truly feel His love in your sermon."

"Thank you Lee," Gai gave the young priest a thumbs up. "I am but a mouthpiece for His Word. Never let your Flames of Faith extinguish!"

"Father Guy!"

"Lee!" The two embraced and the third person remaining could have sworn they saw a sunset scene somehow appear behind the two.

"We took plenty of donations again," The third member, a stoic looking girl with her hair in two buns that were visible under her Nun attire, walked over to the couple with an offering tray. Her official name was I0-1O, but the two others called her Tenten. "Looks like we might be able to look into upgrading the Church so we can get more people to sit in comfort."

"Indeed," Father Guy nodded sagely. "The Faithful travel far to hear the word of our Lord, it is only fair we try our best to accommodate them."

"Father Guy, I have been looking into how to cook! I think we could do a bake sale in order to raise more money. That way all who seek to listen to Your Sermons will be able to hear your amazing words!"

"Lee…" Guy's voice went stern. "It is not me they are here to hear. It is the Word of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ!"

"Ah… Forgive me father."

"We must always be humble!" Guy declared. "We are but the humble tools of Him!"

"How faithful of you." A dry voice remarked as Jiraiya stepped into the church. "I am sure He appreciates you being His tools."

"Can I help you? I am afraid you have missed the sermon," Guy stepped forwards.

"I received a summons." Jiraiya pulled an envelope from his jacket.

"I see…" Gai nodded solemnly. "This church offers refuge to all who seek protection. Even those who believe He has forsaken him are safe here."

"I find that hard to believe coming from the Holy Inferno." The old fallen angel crossed his arms and he took in the church. "So I get a mysterious summon to a Church and one of the old Anti-Fallen Exorcists happen to be waiting for me. Let me guess, the two brats are from the rumoured 'Rebirth' program? Still I've been here a while, I wonder why only now Heaven has decided to take action?"

"I assure you, we didn't send that summons, nor do we have any plans to attack you." Gai bowed his head solemnly, "I am no longer in the exorcist business. I do His work by spreading the gospel now."

Jiraiya gave a grunt of acknowledgement and looked at the two other members of the cloth. The young priest seemed full of energy and optimism, while the nun seemed to have just the right amount of distrust and cynicism that Jiraiya would expect from a Vat grown Vatican soldier.

As if sensing his thoughts, the nun spoke, "I am indeed from the Rebirth program. My official designation is I0-1O, or as I am known here, Tenten. While I have no intention to fight you, be warned that should you cause any trouble I was trained in multiple fighting styles, armed and unarmed, and excelled in anti-Fallen combat techniques."

"I'll keep that in mind," Jiraiya remarked, his tone showing how little he actually rated her as a threat, however Tenten seemed not to be offended by this and escorted him to a room at the back of the church.

"The one who summoned you awaits within. We will be listening." Tenten opened the door and the fallen angel walked in, freezing in shock as he saw who was sat at the table.

The angel waiting for him had long brown hair and wore bandages covering their eyes. Hovering behind them was a cherub, who quickly dashed behind the angel, peering over its white wings shyly at Jiraiya.

"It has been some time, Jiraiya-san," The angel spoke formally and gestured to the seat opposite himself.

"Neji," Jiraiya fidgeted awkwardly, "It's been a while. How are you?"

"I am well," Neji shook his head. "Please sit. There are things we need to discuss."

"Such as?" Jiraiya took the indicated seat and watched as Neji poured a small cup of tea and handed it to Jiraiya, his blindness apparently not hindering him in the slightest.

"There are rumours in heaven, rumours that have been causing great concern along the lower echelons of heaven. It doesn't help matters that the Seraphs have been surprisingly quiet on the matter and they say Lady Gabriel has returned to leading military affairs."

"So you came to me?" Jiraiya tilted his head.

"I assure you, I have exhausted all of my contacts in the Heavens, otherwise I would not be here."

"I see. How'd you find me?"

"My contacts In Heaven have known where you were for some time. They simply saw no need to pass your location onto the Seraphs. After all, if reports are true you are something of a leader amongst the independent Fallen Angels in this area and thanks to our.. arrangement you are more valuable alive than dead.."

"I try and help out those who don't belong to the Three Factions, yeah," Jiraiya nodded. "So you came to ask me if I'd heard anything?"

"Indeed," Neji took a sip of a cup of tea. "Himawari, could you please fetch me the biscuits?"

The cherub shyly nodded and flew off to a table, bring a tray of biscuits which she put on the table before returning to her hiding spot, shyly peering at Jiraiya from behind the snow-white wings of Neji.

"These are from a nice little store just outside of the Vatican city. I do find myself quite enamoured with Earth cuisine. Clearly our Father knew what he was doing when he bestowed Free Will upon the children."

"Hm, humanity sure has its good points," Jiraiya conceded as he picked up a chocolate biscuit.

"You see, the rumours I wish to be clarified are those revolving around the Cursed Child, more specifically his survival."

"Huh," Jiraiya scowled. "Is that so?"

"I won't ask you if he is alive or not, because I already know how such a conversation would go. I will instead only ask you one question. Does Heaven have anything to fear?"

"No," Jiraiya announced confidently, "At least they don't if they don't do something that makes them have something to fear."

"I see." Neji let out a relieved sigh. "It may not mean much to you, but those words will definitely calm down those who came to me for answers. Your word still carries somewhat in particular circles of Heaven."

"I see." Jiraiya was somewhat surprised by this, given how he had left heaven in… less than friendly terms.

"As a thank for meeting me, I have a bit of information that you might find useful," Neji stood up, the cherub Himawari fussing around him, straightening his robes and brushing the crumbs from his face. "Gabriel appears to have a guilt complex around the death of your pupil and the fate of the Cursed Child. She appears to seek redemption and if the Cursed Child were to be alive and the two meet each other, his actions could very easily cause Gabriel to fall."

"Ah…" Jiraiya stared into space. If one of the Four Seraphs of Heaven was to fall, especially the strongest spellcaster Gabriel, that could cause all sorts of problems. But if Gabriel was truly desperate for redemption for her part in Naruto's fate… Jiraiya could use that. "Thanks for the heads up."

"Till we meet again," Neji bowed his head and vanished in a flutter of feathers. His cherub held back and collected said feathers, before shyly waving goodbye and vanishing with a pop.

"Huh…" Jiraiya closed his eyes.

" _Please Naruto… Forgive me…" Gabriel clasped Naruto's hands, tears in her eyes._

" _Your actions killed my father and robbed me of my chance of family!" Naruto snapped as he pulled his hand free._

' _Then… let me give you a life for a life… a daughter for a father and a wife for a family…' Gabriel allowed her robes to fall to the floor, revealing her perfect, virgin skin. "I will be yours… body and soul…"_

"Son of a bitch," Jiraiya grumbled as he opened his eyes, trying hard not to feel unreasonably jealous of his 'apprentice' for his own fantasies.

He didn't have much luck.

* * *

While Jiraiya was having his meeting with two of the Seraphs, far across the town sinister forces were at work. In an abandoned house on the outskirts of civilisation, three devils were meeting with a tall figure whose entire body was hidden beneath a red cloak. Only a crest featuring a sword behind an open book with the motto 'Fiat voluntas novissimo eius' written in a cursive script below it.

These three devils were not members of any of the great families, nor did they pledge allegiance to the Four Satans. They were independents, more commonly referred to as rogue devils. The main thing about independents were that they didn't follow the Rules of Contact, the rules that limited what devils and angels could do regarding humanity that had been drawn up a long, long time ago. These rules essentially limited Angels/Devils to guiding humans and offering only small bits of power but otherwise not being involved in their daily affairs. While there were exceptions to the rule (Sacred Gear holders, Exorcists and Devil Cultists largely being classed as 'Non-human' for the sake of the agreement) they were generally designed to ensure humanity chose its own route to either salvation or damnation, as the Creator had wanted supposedly.

As they largely ignored the Rules of Contact, Independents did whatever they liked in regard to humanity, be it practically adopting or marrying a mortal to much less savoury interactions. It was these later cases that required dealing with. This current group had several of the less savoury kind of interactions, from abusing hypnosis and stealing, but given the lack of response from the Sitri clan they felt emboldened in their actions. Maybe this is what caused them to accept a strange job that resulted in the strange figure before them arriving to check on several crates of… well something.

"You have received the packages?" The cloaked figure had a male voice, one that exuded an air of quiet yet definite power.

"Yeah, yeah," The tallest of the three devils stepped forward. He had an unruly mop of black hair and was wearing what looked like a school uniform, although his general size and appearance made him look far too old to be a genuine student. Since he was usually the one who gave the orders, the other two devils simply knew him as 'Boss'. "Don't see why one of your ilk is hiring people like us to hold onto this crap though? Suffering a shortage of manpower?"

"This is what the Tapestry of Fates commands us to do." The cloaked figure responded bluntly, a clear note of annoyance in his tone. "Were it not for that, I would have much preferred to handle this matter myself."

"Care to tell us why what exactly we are holding on to?" Another of the three devils asked. This one was female and wore a kimono and had pale white skin. Her long black hair and the elegant naginata she was carrying made her look the very picture of a 'Yamato Nadeshiko', so the others simply called her Nadeshiko. She was currently holding a small glass cylinder, in which a strange, claylike sphere floated in suspension.

"They are required for what comes next." Was the only response the cloaked figure gave. "All you are required to do is watch over them for a short time. Another agent will claim them."

"Right, right," The third devil yawned. He was much shorter than his two colleagues, looking barely older than 10. As with the other two, he had black hair but his was shaved off, so only a black shadow remained upon his head. He demanded to be called Destroyer but was largely known as Buzzcut. "So, we do this and get paid by your contact right?"

"That is correct." And with that the cloaked figure simply vanished from sight.

"Geez, using teleportation magic in Sitri territory?" Boss let out a sigh. "Does he want the whole damn clan ripping us apart?"

"I doubt the Sitri clan would move that quickly either way." Nadeshiko continued to stare at the cylinder with interest. "We have been here for weeks and they are yet to make a move. I imagine the heiress has more important matters to deal with than some rogue devils who have set up shop in an abandoned building. It isn't as if we have done anything that couldn't have been done by a sufficiently motivated human, so they probably don't even know we are here."

"True," Boss nodded, "Put that down before you break it, will you? Those things are in sealed containers for a reason."

"Which is?" Buzzcut glanced at the leader of the trio.

"Well…" The Boss hesitated for a moment before scoffing at the youngster, "It's bloody obvious, if you're too dumb to know that's not my problem to deal with."

"You wanna go?!" The shorter devil squared up to the Boss.

"I don't pick on children," Boss snorted as he turned his back on Buzzcut, who was vibrating with anger.

"Please behave yourselves," Nadeshiko sighed. "Go and calm down Buzzcut. In a couple of days, we will be paid, and we can all go have some fun. Maybe we could all find some cute girls and play around a little. Oh has anyone seen that drug addled fool?"

"Predator?" Boss frowned. "He's probably coming down and is asleep somewhere. Wouldn't surprise me if he tried to sample whatever these things are." He gestured at the vial Nadeshiko was holding. "Buzzcut, go out and see if you can find the moron. If he has done anything to endanger our mission… Well he's had enough warnings so take care of him."

"Yeah, yeah," The shorter devil scowled and walked out of the room that the meeting had taken place in. For an abandoned building, the place they called home was in good repair and with a few strategically placed magical wards, it was unfindable by anyone who didn't already know its location. He stepped out onto the street, looking around in the late evening sun. He noticed a young girl who looked lost. She was wearing a grey hoodie with cute little cat ears on the hood. With a smirk he walked over to her, his mission instantly forgotten. "Hey there little missy… You look a bit lost."

"I am…" The girl spoke softly and emotionlessly.

"Maybe you could follow me, and I could help you," Buzzcut used his devil powers to bolster his charisma. "I live nearby, and you can relax for a moment."

"I'd appreciate that."

Buzzcut grinned widely. While not technically hypnotism, his ability to bolster his Charisma did have a strong effect on the opposite gender and the girl followed him without question as he let her into the house.

"So… Is this your home?" The girl asked as she stepped inside.

"Yup," Buzzcut grinned. "Bet you were surprised when a house suddenly appeared. See we are magic!"

"Not really."

Buzzcut didn't have time to respond as he was suddenly struck with such force all the air (and a good deal of his blood) was forced out his mouth as the small girl punched him directly in the stomach. He opened his mouth to cry out in alarm, but without any air all he did was choke before passing out.

Koneko tossed aside her hoodie, revealing her battle attire before leaving the house and waiting. After a minute or two, Kiba and Issei joined up with her and the trio entered the house again.

"Well that's one way to get around the wards," Kiba remarked softly as he walked over to the unconscious devil. "Yes… This is one of the criminals we were sent to investigate. There should be three more."

"So…" Issei fidgeted awkwardly. "What did these devils do?"

"A few minor crimes apparently. They are only low ranked devils so this shouldn't be too difficult," Kiba smiled at Issei, "But don't worry, no harm will befall you. I promise you this."

"Stop it with the prince act," Issei grumbled. "You're not gonna sway me!"

"Quiet." Koneko looked at the two, Kiba smiling apologetically while Issei looked at the ground like a chastised child.

"Buzzcut? What was that noise? Did you punch Predator through a wall again? How many times do I have to tell you this house is only made of…" Nadeshiko trailed off as she walked out to see the unconscious Buzzcut and sheepish Issei. "Oh? I don't believe we've met."

Issei suddenly realised that Koneko and Kiba were nowhere to be seen. "Er… Hi there! Er… How are you?" She smiled nervously.

"Oh I am just brilliant," Nadeshiko smiled and walked towards Issei calmly, her every movement carrying such grace that Issei found herself wondering if this devil was a former noble or something. As she got close to Issei, she raised a hand to stroke her cheek. "At least now that I have seen your face."

"W-well…" Issei stammered, not quite sure how to respond. While she wasn't 100% sure, this devil did look like one of the four devils she was sent here to help capture.

"So cute… So pure too…" Nadeshiko licked her lips, "I think you'll make a lovely bed partner."

"I'm flattered…" Issei tried to step back but her body wasn't responding.

"Oh? It seems you can resist my Lover's Caress? But not completely…" Nadeshiko purred. "Any whom I stroke usually becomes my willing slave… Well that's fine too. I have plenty of fun tools to break you in~" There was a definite evil radiating from her eyes and Issei realised she was in danger.

"Boost!" Issei leapt backwards, overpowering the enchantment by sheer power and brought her arms up. While not a talented combatant, she was a half-way decent brawler and she figured between her new boosted powers and her devil nature she'd be able to put up a fight.

Then Nadeshiko flourished her naginata, frost slowly filling the room with each swing.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am a former Yuki-Onna. I would tell you my name, but the others here merely call me Nadeshiko and you… you can call me mistress~" She lunged at Issei.

Issei launched herself out of the way of the attack, flinching as the cabinets she struck instantly turned to ice only to shatter when she slammed the naginata on the floor.

"Do you see what fate awaits you if you continue this resistance?" Nadeshiko smiled beautifully, looking like an angel amongst the frost that was filling the room. The air had started to go so cold it hurt Issei to breath and she realised that she needed to end this fight quickly. She wasn't sure where Kiba and Koneko were and chose to take it that they trusted her to win this fight. Emboldened by this belief, she charged the icy warrior, who deftly danced away from her clumsy assault, scoring light nicks on Issei as if taunting her.

Each fist was dodged with the least possible moment, just brushing her hair or kimono before Nadeshiko danced around her lunge, lightly cutting an arm or a leg. With each cut, Issei's limbs seemed heavier and less responsive.

"Damn it! Stay still and let me hit you!" Issei growled as she tried to ignore the cold seeping into her body through the small cuts on her arms and legs. Try as she might, she could feel her entire body slowly start to slow down as it froze. "Crap!"

"My, my… Such language is unbecoming of such a sweet concubine of mine."

"I ain't nothing of yours!" Issei scowled.

"You'll change your tune. They always do." Nadeshiko leaned forward revealing some of her modest cleavage and blew a kiss, only when she blew a small cone of frost radiated outwards and while Issei was able to shield her core, her arms were frozen solid, and her legs and lower torso weren't feeling too clever.

' _ **Sigh… It's a shame that babe doesn't have big boobs. That would have looked super sexy then. Not that I have a problem with small breasts and in some cases, they can look better than the big ones but this feels like a situation where a bigger bust would have resulted in a larger payoff personally.'**_

'… _Huh?!'_

' _ **Oh? You can hear me now. Huh… Right then… I can tell you how to win this battle.'**_

' _Who are you?'_

' _ **That is unimportant… In order to win… you must strip her! Yuki-onna rely on kimonos for power. That is totally a fact and not something I just made up. Her weak spot is her breasts. You've gotta expose em! Only then will you be able to build up a burning sensation within yourself to counter her cold!'**_

' _There's no way that is an actual strategy!'_ Issei mentally rebuked the voice in her head. "Boost!" There was an explosion as Issei launched herself out of the ice imprisoning her and directly at the former Yuki-Onna, who was taken by surprise.

"What… What is this? How can you still move?!"

"Rias-senpai… She says I am like a wildfire! Guess that means I'm too hot for you to handle!" Issei dodged the fast slash of the naginata with ease. After spending several hours dodging Akeno's unpredictable attacks, a straight forward slash was child's play after a second boost.

"How irritating," Nadeshiko slammed her Naginata into the floor, causing several spikes of ice to erupt from the floor, however unlike Akeno's Lightning trap, these attacks weren't instant and Issei managed to dodge them easily. "You are quite the irritating little fly aren't you?"

"Boost!" Issei leapt at the woman, who was struggling to defend herself against the barrage of clumsy punches and all it took was a single moment of distraction and a fist found it's target, sending the fragile Yuki-onna hurtling into a wall with an explosion that ripped her clothes and revealed her chest bindings and slender stomach.

' _ **So close!'**_

"You… You bitch!" She struggled to her feat "You'll pay for that!" She fell back to a knee as she noticed several claw marks that had shredded her clothes, exposing her arms and legs. "When… When did you do that?! I… Oh no… You are Sitri-san's devils?! I was innocent! I was forced into helping them! Please don't kill me! I… I am innocent and…"

THWACK!

"We don't have time for this," Koneko rubbed her knuckles as the Nadeshiko joined her comrade in the realm of unconsciousness. "You took too long. Your punches are sloppy."

"S-sorry," Issei bowed her head as the smaller girl turned around and headed towards the doorway to the next room.

"…Tomorrow I will show you how to throw a proper punch," The rook declared before continuing into the building, leaving Issei and the now reappeared Kiba to deal with the unconscious devils.

"That's her way of saying good job. Akeno-san requested we let you take on at least one of the devils so you understand."

"Understand?"

"We are all very powerful devils. Don't feel bad about how poorly our spars go. Against the average devil…" Kiba gestured to the defeated Nadeshiko. "Even when you don't hit an enemy, your 'dragon claws' shred the enemy it seems."

"Er… How do I do that?" Issei laughed weakly.

' _ **You should totally do that all the time when sparring Rias and Akeno. Give me something nice to look at rather than your reflection."**_

Issei merely plugged her ears and hummed loudly, earning a confused glance from Kiba.

* * *

"Here we go!" Tsunade let out a yell as she struck the football with all her strength, feeling a rush as she saw the ball hit the back of the net and the cheers of her fellow students. If only Naru-nii was here to ruffle her hair and tell her she was amazing. That would be perfection.

Letting out a soft sigh she made her way back to her side of the field, trying not to pay attention to the scoreboard.

Losing 5-3 was a bit disheartening but she could turn it around. Or at least that was what she told herself but no sooner had play resumed than the referee blew her whistle and the game ended.

"Aw man," Tsunade's shoulders dropped. Losing was never fun and, given how her team was pretty good, they rarely felt this disappointment. She nodded at her teammates and patted them on the back. They were all out of breath, completely drained and for that Tsunade was proud. Up to the end her team had given everything they had, even if the result wasn't in their favour, they could at least be proud of their effort.

"They were ridiculously good," The goalkeeper for her team, a young chubby girl called Chocho, grumbled. "Where was my defence half of that game?"

"They outplayed us," Tsunade shrugged. "I guess at the end of the day, this team is just too good."

A young girl, the captain of the other team walked over, offering commiserations to the losing team, before approaching Tsunade with a smile. She had black hair and was wearing glasses. She gave Tsunade a 'Mito' vibe with how neat and tidy she looked, especially after the intense football game she had just played it.

"Hey there, I'm Uchiha Sarada. I just want to say thank you for the game. We are getting ready for nationals and we appreciate your team agreeing to play us in a friendly."

"It was the school's choice," Tsunade merely shrugged. "Still, you must be favourites to win the School National League if you can play like that. Seriously, your attack made our defence look like it wasn't even there for most of that game."

"True your defence wasn't capable of coping with our attack, but I could say the same right back. Every time you got the ball our defence fell apart trying to deal with you. You should come to our school. It's a complete system so you can stay at Kuoh from childhood to adulthood and we have one of the best schools for… well pretty much any subject. You should totally apply for a scholarship for next year. With skills like yours, I feel our team would go from National level to World Class!"

"W-well," Tsunade laughed weakly, "That's really flattering."

"I'd hurry and get in while you can," The other team's captain sighed. "I fear they might start allowing _boys_ to join our school soon."

"Oh?" Tsunade blinked. "What makes you say that?"

"Well we have recently hired a male janitor to 'allow students to get acclimatised to male presence'." Sarada scowled slightly. "I have heard enough stories from my eldest sister about boys to know that things will go downhill if they make that decision. Even though my sister says Uzumaki-san seems a good person, there have been rumours about scandalous behaviour."

"…Uzumaki-san?!"

"Yes, our Janitor, Uzumaki Naruto-san. They say he is dating the Vice president of Kuoh! Imagine that! A member of staff dating a student!"

"T-t-this has to be an old man, right?!"

"Oh no. He is the same age as the Vice President of the High School." Sarada remarked bluntly. "I think he's a foreigner too…"

"W-w-what makes you say that?!"

"Oh, he has bright blonde hair and I'm told his blue eyes are quite calming and beautiful, well for a boy anyway."

"…Oh…" Tsunade blinked. "So… Who would I go to see about this Scholarship?"

As she returned to the side-lines, Mito was stood waiting for her sister.

"So, you got beat then?" Mito sighed. "It is to be expected. Kuoh academy is one of the best schools in the area and their primary and college divisions are particularly renowned for their dedication to extracurricular sports. Still, as Student President I should congratulate you on giving it your all, even in the face of certain defeat, not that I find that surprising, given your attempts at stealing Onii-sama from me."

"Hm? Oh yeah, we lost. That sucks, Hahahaha." Tsunade whistled innocently. "So… I was thinking I might apply for a scholarship there."

"… That is an odd decision," Mito narrowed her eyes. "Do you know something I should know?"

"Of course not," Tsunade looked at the field, doing her best to avoid looking her twin in the eyes. "I was just thinking that they have a really good football team and I'd like to play for them. Honest."

"Hmm…" Mito narrowed her eyes and pulled a phone from her school bag. "Kuoh Academy is a private girl only school with three separate entities designed to cater to Primary, Secondary and Tertiary education. It is renowned for it's academic and sporting achievements as well its wide range of extracurricular activities. It is rated 4th in the National Ratings."

"Yup, It sounds awesome, doesn't it?"

"Key features involve a new arrival Uzumaki Naruto." Mito continued.

"It says that?!" Tsunade looked at her sister who wasn't even glancing at the phone. Realising she'd been played, the energetic twin tried to think of a quick response, but Mito was barely paying attention. She has discovered where her beloved Onii-sama was. "Er… I mean…"

"So…" Mito smiled, "Onii-sama has been located. I wonder how he got into an all girl's school? Wait… surrounded by harlots who all want to steal him from me?! I must take action! Such improper girls would no doubt use uncouth measures and trick my noble brother into dating them. He is far too trusting."

"Well the girl I was talking to didn't seem happy he was there."

"You fool!" Mito suddenly exclaimed. "It is the sluttiest line in the book! 'Oh I totally don't like him, the baka' haven't you ever heard of a Tsundere?!"

"Eh?"

"My path is clear," Mito narrowed her eyes. "I must enroll at Kuoh to protect Onii-sama, so that he may be clean and pure when we finally exchange our bodies to one another. Not that I would ever reject my beloved, but surely the horror of someone else using him before we can passionately exchange our love would likely cause him irreparable damage. He is such a pure soul."

"W-wait a second! I'm going to Kuoh! It's only right that Naru-nii's future bride has a fulfilling school life with him!"

"Which is why I will be going to Kuoh. You wouldn't get in anyway, so it is better to make your peace as his sister-in-law."

"Like hell! I'll bet it is super expensive and our parents can't afford it. Only I can get in with a sports scholarship!"

"I am sure there are many scholarships and even if there isn't, I am sure our parents would agree that I, the intellectual one of us, would be the better choice to invest in. When I am Prime Minister and legalise marriage between siblings, I will allow you to be my bridesmaid at our wedding. "

"Like hell that is going to happen! I'm gonna go there and then win a world cup for Japan and as a national hero they'll totally agree with my belief that what happens between two consenting adults is perfectly a-OK!"

"Oh because just because someone who is half-way decent at football says it is so, people are just going to accept it?"

"More chance than some cold bitch trying to force it through the diet!"

"I tire of talking to such an uncouth ogre. No wonder Onii-sama fled from our home."

"Maybe it was you and your constant scheming!"

The two continued to argue, unaware of one key problem.

It was the middle of the school year and there weren't any scholarships for another six months.

* * *

"I won't tell you anything!" Boss declared stubbornly, his face a mass of bruises. Despite his name, he had posed little challenge for Koneko, who had quickly kicked his ass.

The three captured Rogue devils were currently tied up and gagged, with only the boss able to speak. While Kiba tried to interrogate him, Koneko and Issei were checking out the strange cylinders that they had been guarding.

"Oh I love it when they say that~" Akeno walked into the room, her face radiating a happiness that made Boss's bravado slowly slip away. "I am sure I will have plenty of fun getting you to talk~"

"Er… When I said I won't tell you anything, what I meant was…"

"Shh… Don't ruin my fun, okay?"

"Look, I'm guessing from the ease with which you beat us that you are Sitri devils. I wanna make a plea deal but only when I talk to your leader!"

"Unfortunately for you, we are not Sitri devils. In fact, we were given very clear orders to ensure than any issues were… taken care of quickly and quietly."

"L-Listen," Boss squeaked out as Akeno advanced on him, "I know things!"

"Such as?"

"W-well if I tell you then I have no leverage," Boss mumbled.

"Oh? Do you believe you actually had some to start with?" Akeno laughed, "How cute~"

"What are these?" Issei asked as she walked over to Akeno with one of the cylinders containing the suspended clay-like sphere.

"Hell if I know," Boss remarked. "We were just told to watch after them."

"By who?" Akeno asked.

Boss opened his mouth to answer, but suddenly started to jerk violently against his bindings, his eyes rolled up into his head and he frothed at the mouth. In a matter of seconds, he suddenly stopped and slumped to the floor, silent and still.

"What the hell?" Issei stepped backwards.

"Hm…" Kiba knelt next to the captive. "He's dead."

"How suspicious," Akeno narrowed her eyes. "Clearly whoever he was working for made an effort to cover his tracks should anything go wrong."

"The others died too," Koneko remarked from the corner of the room where the other two rogue devils had slumped over, foaming at the mouth.

"We have yet to find the fourth member but judging by the nature of the instantaneous death of the others, it is probably safe to assume the last member died too. I shall resume searching for him regardless but we should report this to Rias-sama," Kiba stood up.

"Shouldn't we let Sitri-san know to?" Issei asked, "She did send us on this mission."

"It is up to Rias-sama what information she deems needs passing on to Sitri-san. We are but tools for Rias-sama." Kiba shook her head.

"The world of the Devils is a political nightmare, even a close ally such as the Sitri Clan may one day be our adversary, though Rias-sama is loathe to think like that. At the end of the day though, it is her decision to make and we merely stand by her no matter what." Akeno smiled, "And if the day comes where I have to… entertain Sitri-san for Rias-sama's sake then… I am sure I can think of quite a few fun games to get some interesting faces from her."

Issei shivered a little, partly at Akeno's sadism, but also at the fact that they were expecting their closest allies to become enemies at some point.

"Devils are by nature greedy," Kiba explained, seeing Issei's expression, "There may come a time when assisting Rias-sama is counter to her own interests and unlike us, Sitri-san is not a member of the peerage and will place her own goals above ours. That doesn't mean it is likely, however. The alliance between the Sitri and Gremory clan is pretty strong, however it never hurts to prepare. Still it would be wise not to speak about such things in Rias-sama's presence. She is… pure even by heaven's standards and would not take such a discussion well."

"R-Right," Issei nodded. She suddenly found herself imagining Rias in white satin lingerie, laid in a sexy way, but completely naïve to her sexiness. _'I hope this doesn't awaken something in me…'_ She thought to herself.

"One of the vials are missing," Koneko interrupted the conversation.

"How can you tell?"

"Empty box," Koneko replied bluntly and held up the wooden container. There were two empty slots and Issei was holding one of the vials.

"It isn't impossible that it was empty anyway, but we should keep our eyes open and finish our search. Issei-chan?"

"Y-yes?!" Issei snapped out of her daydream.

"You did well for your first mission. You should head home and get some rest okay?"

"Right!" Issei nodded eagerly and set off on her way.

Still trying to shake the image of angel Rias from her head, she never noticed the pair of eyes watching her leave.

* * *

The sun was almost setting when Naruto made his way through the park where he had first met Issei. His mood was cheerful, partly in the fact that he could now cast magic, but also due to the fact he felt like he was making very real progress.

As he stopped at the tree where Issei had been peaking, he took a moment to consider what lay ahead. Sure he had plans to save Asia, but what then? Jiraiya said he had to win over the three Factions in order to ensure his own safety but how did he actually do that? Sure helping Sitri-san would improve his status with her, and she had an elder sister that was a Satan, but that could actually work against him when it came to winning over the leaders of the other factions.

He was so deep in thought he never noticed the person sneaking up on him who then put her hands over his eyes and pushed her generous chest into his back.

"Guess who~"

Naruto broke free and span around, falling into a defensive stance at the familiar voice. "Raynare."

"We have to stop meeting like this," The fallen angel smiled. She was wearing her human disguise today. "You looked so lost in thought. I was so tempted to stab you since you make the cutest cries of pain."

"What do you want?" Naruto grit his teeth, mentally weighing up his chances of winning a fight. He was stronger than he was before but Raynare was very powerful.

"Such hostility?" Raynare chuckled. "I was bored and figured I'd have a little fun. Humans are so easy to string along. Like there was this one girl, I can't remember her name. She was so desperate for a sister, it made her really easy to manipulate."

"You know her name," Naruto growled. "If you have something to say, say it. If not get lost before I make you."

"You aren't any fun today." The fallen angel sighed. "Maybe I should go and play with the little nun."

"Leave Asia alone."

"Or what? Are you going to fight me?"

"If you make me, yes."

"…Why though?" Raynare frowned, all flirtatious behaviour vanished instantly.

"What do you mean?"

"You nearly died fighting me the first time. What makes you think you would fare better a few days later? More to the point why on earth would you throw away your life for someone you don't even know?" Raynare crossed her arms. "Do you think you are a hero? Swooping in to save the day? Let me tell you, there are no heroes in this world. No living ones at least. I've heard rumours your are training, that you're planning to get in the way of my mission. A word of advice: Don't."

"Well I have my own advice for you," Naruto countered, "Don't sacrifice Asia. If you let her go I won't interfere."

"Asia wants to be sacrificed, to make amends for her sins."

"For sins that she doesn't even have!" There was a clear tone of anger from Naruto. "She has done nothing wrong!"

Raynare's lips curled in disgust, "Sometimes we don't have to do anything wrong to get punished. This is the world He made after all."

"…How did you fall?" Naruto asked. "The way you speak makes it sound as if you feel you didn't deserve it."

"Oh? Are you gonna save me now? Gonna make me see the error of my ways and change my life around?"

"If I can, probably." Naruto responded.

"Really? Do you actually hear what you are saying? You make me sick. You and the sugary-sweet-saint of a nun. You all act as if there is some 'justice' in the world. That Good and Evil are actual concepts with a physical representation. They aren't. They are just words used to make you feel better about what you do in life." The fallen angel sneered. "Well newsflash, the world is shitty and bad things happen to good people. The nun will die because I, the stronger of us, demand it and if you try and get in my way, you will die, Jiraiya be damned." She grabbed Naruto around the neck, who calmly stared her in the eyes.

"You say you are stronger than Asia, but even in her current situation she is smiling and helping people." Naruto pulled her hand away from his throat. "You might want to believe that the world is crap, because then it justifies your refusal to do anything about it. I'm not that weak."

"Just stay out of my way. It isn't as if Asia wants you to save her anyway." Raynare hissed as she spun around and stormed off.

Naruto watched her go and let out a soft sigh before rubbing his throat. He only had a few more days before Raynare carried out her plan. That thought usually inspired a feeling of dread in him, but not today.

She had struggled against his attempts to move her hand away from his throat, but he had overpowered her. Sure she might be magic focused, but even this little victory was a sign he was getting stronger.

He nodded and made his way back to Jiraiya's, psyching himself up for whatever training the old pervert would have imagined.

Watching him go was a furious Raynare, rubbing the bruises around her wrist.

' _How did he get so strong so quickly?! I cannot allow anything to get in the way of my plan. I cannot fail Azazel-sama. I guess I'll send Dohnaseek to deal with that irritating insect.'_ She walked towards the church, pausing as she noticed a slumped figure in one of the bushes. Closer inspection revealed a dishevelled devil that was foaming in the mouth. By the looks of the corpse, it had not lived a very… clean life and had clearly died of an overdose of some new magical drug. She cared little for the death of a devil, but something about the figure felt off.

Kneeling down to look at the corpse, she noticed it appeared to be gripping something tightly in on of its hands. Overcome with a morbid sort of curiosity, Raynare looked closer at the hand and noticed the corpse was gripping something so tightly that it had cut into its own palm with its finger nails, there was a still a small speck of damp blood from the cuts, implying that the corpse had not been dead that long.

"What the…" Raynare pried open the corpse's clenched fist, in which a small glass cylinder was found, with a strange clay-like sphere floating in suspension within it. "Interesting," She smirked as she recognised what it was. "This is very illegal. I think this could be _very_ useful to me."

Pocketing the vial and leaving the corpse to rot, Raynare headed back to the abandoned church.

She had plans and when they were done, not only would Azazel know she was his best soldier, but Heaven and Hell would fear her name and then… when the fighting started again… she would burn down Heaven and all those who turned their back on her.

She would have her revenge.


End file.
